fumble

American  

[fuhm-buhl] / ˈfʌm bəl /

verb (used without object)

fumbles, present (3rd person singular) fumbled, past participle, past fumbling present participle

1. to feel or grope about clumsily.

   She fumbled in her purse for the keys.

2. Sports. to fumble the ball.

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verb (used with object)

fumbles, present (3rd person singular) fumbled, past participle, past fumbling present participle

1. to make, handle, etc., clumsily or inefficiently.

   to fumble an attempt; He fumbled his way through the crowded room.

   Synonyms:

   muff, spoil, mishandle, botch, bungle

2. Sports. to fail to hold or maintain hold on (a ball) after having touched it or carried it.

noun

fumbles plural

1. the act of fumbling.

   We completed the difficult experiment without a fumble.

2. Sports. an act or instance of fumbling the ball.

fumble British  

/ ˈfʌmbəl /

verb

1. (intr; often foll by for or with) to grope about clumsily or blindly, esp in searching

   he was fumbling in the dark for the money he had dropped

2. (intr; foll by at or with) to finger or play with, esp in an absent-minded way

3. to say or do hesitantly or awkwardly

   he fumbled the introduction badly

4. to fail to catch or grasp (a ball, etc) cleanly

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noun

1. the act of fumbling

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• fumbler
  noun
• fumblingness
  noun
• outfumble
  verb (used with object)
• unfumbled
  adjective
• unfumbling
  adjective
• fumblingly
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• fumbles
  plural

Participles

• fumbling
  present
• fumbled
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• fumble
  simple
• fumbles
  simple
• have fumbled
  perfect
• has fumbled
  perfect
• am fumbling
  progressive
• are fumbling
  progressive
• is fumbling
  progressive
• have been fumbling
  perfect progressive
• has been fumbling
  perfect progressive

Past

• fumbled
  simple
• had fumbled
  perfect
• was fumbling
  progressive
• were fumbling
  progressive
• had been fumbling
  perfect progressive

Future

• will fumble
  simple
• will have fumbled
  perfect
• will be fumbling
  progressive
• will have been fumbling
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of fumble

1500–10; akin to Norwegian, Swedish fumla, Middle Low German fummeln to grope, fumble

Explanation

If you're a football fan you know all about the agony of the fumble — the clumsy handling of the ball that makes you drop it or lose possession. Fumbling is an uncoordinated movement that can involve your entire body, not just your hands. Witness the poor parent of a newborn trying to fumble with a diaper on at three in the morning. Fumble has a more metaphorical meaning as well, meaning to mess up or mishandle. Politicians are often accused of fumbling the major issues.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

fumble fumbles fumbled fumbling

But, as any Alabamian will tell you, legends don’t fumble the football, and Apple’s grip on artificial intelligence technologies has been anything but secure.

From Barron's ● Apr. 20, 2026

We ate revuelta at his favorite pupuseria, hot filling running over our fingers, locals watching me fumble with the etiquette.

From Slate ● Apr. 12, 2026

There was tetchiness and a few cross words as India dropped three catches - Abhishek Sharma guilty of one particularly poor fumble - and a missed run-out chance.

From BBC ● Mar. 1, 2026

The most shocking fumble of all came on Friday night when figure skater Ilia Malinin, the self-proclaimed “quad god,” melted down in the brutal heat of the Olympic spotlight.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 14, 2026

I glance back at Ben as I fumble with the keys.

From "What If It's Us" by Becky Albertalli and Adam Silvera

Yes, Maye also lost six fumbles but he only threw eight interceptions and was much cooler in the pocket, perhaps because he possesses one weapon that Darnold is missing.

From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 6, 2026

Maye was sacked five times and surrendered four fumbles in the Patriots' win over the Houston Texans last week.

From Barron's ● Jan. 22, 2026

Two costly fumbles and two interceptions led to a nail-biter of a playoff game.

From Salon ● Jan. 18, 2026

As long as CJ Stroud cleans things up and doesn't have another five fumbles, I'm backing the Texans to make their first AFC Championship game.

From BBC ● Jan. 17, 2026

He fumbles with the lighter before it consents to spark.

From "The Night Circus" by Erin Morgenstern

After South Korea’s goalkeeper fumbled a ball, Luis Romo scored the goal that gave the Mexicans six points and pushed them to the top of the standings.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 20, 2026

The commentariat also is advancing the narrative that Apple under Cook’s leadership has fumbled badly in its embrace of artificial intelligence.

From MarketWatch ● Apr. 21, 2026

Ditto for a man named John Thompson, whose invention helped keep fumbled fasteners from falling on the floor.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 12, 2026

His first finish was the easiest goal he is likely to score in his career, stooping close to the goalline to head in after Kepa Arrizabalaga fumbled the ball into his path.

From BBC ● Mar. 22, 2026

She fumbled for bandages in the medicine chest and bent to unwrap Christopher’s coat.

From "Impossible Creatures" by Katherine Rundell

Ice recalls fumbling with the door in the smoke-engulfed room as he tried to escape.

From BBC ● Jul. 13, 2026

"And, of course, the key to solving a problem is to understand why it's gone wrong. Otherwise, you're just fumbling in the dark."

From Science Daily ● May 29, 2026

“It’s just been one fumbling after another,” she told the Journal.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 11, 2026

As I followed a patrol of federal agents around New York City’s Chinatown during their fumbling attempted raid in mid-October last year, I noticed something curious.

From Slate ● Feb. 9, 2026

I was probably no better than her other students, no less fumbling, but I was driven.

From "Becoming" by Michelle Obama

Related Words

• botch
• flub
• mishandle
• screw up
• stumble