fumble
Americanverb (used without object)
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to feel or grope about clumsily.
She fumbled in her purse for the keys.
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Sports. to fumble the ball.
verb (used with object)
noun
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the act of fumbling.
We completed the difficult experiment without a fumble.
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Sports. an act or instance of fumbling the ball.
verb
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(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
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(intr; foll by at or with) to finger or play with, esp in an absent-minded way
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to say or do hesitantly or awkwardly
he fumbled the introduction badly
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to fail to catch or grasp (a ball, etc) cleanly
noun
Other Word Forms
- fumbler noun
- fumblingly adverb
- fumblingness noun
- outfumble verb (used with object)
- unfumbled adjective
- unfumbling adjective
Etymology
Origin of fumble
1500–10; akin to Norwegian, Swedish fumla, Middle Low German fummeln to grope, fumble
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
But he fumbles with the fixation on Los Angeles wellness culture.
From Los Angeles Times
He pulled off his heavy bag and fumbled in it for his drink bottle.
From Literature
He sank as his cold fingers fumbled with the wet laces.
From Literature
While we wait for that brilliant idea to make it to the NFL’s offices, here are the big game ads we loved the most and a few that fumbled the ball — big time.
From Los Angeles Times
Hall made the game-turning play late in the third quarter when he sacked Maye and stripped the ball for a fumble that was recovered by Murphy at the Patriots’ 37-yard line.
From Los Angeles Times
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
