stumble
[ stuhm-buh l ]
/ ˈstʌm bəl /
verb (used without object), stum·bled, stum·bling.
verb (used with object), stum·bled, stum·bling.
to cause to stumble; trip.
to give pause to; puzzle or perplex.
noun
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Origin of stumble
1275–1325; Middle English stumblen; cognate with Norwegian stumla to grope and stumble in the dark; akin to stammer
OTHER WORDS FROM stumble
stum·bler, nounstum·bling·ly, adverbun·stum·bling, adjectiveWords nearby stumble
stuka, stukkend, stull, stultify, stum, stumble, stumble across, stumblebum, stumbling block, stumer, stump
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020
British Dictionary definitions for stumble across
stumble
/ (ˈstʌmbəl) /
verb (intr)
noun
a false step, trip, or blunder
the act of stumbling
Derived forms of stumble
stumbler, nounstumbling, adjectivestumblingly, adverbWord Origin for stumble
C14: related to Norwegian stumla, Danish dialect stumle; see stammer
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Idioms and Phrases with stumble across
stumble across
Also, stumble on. Find by chance, discover or meet with unexpectedly. For example, When we were hiking up the mountain we stumbled across a few abandoned shepherd's huts, or At the flea market Alfred stumbled on a quite valuable old lithograph. This idiom uses stumble in the sense of “accidentally trip.” [Mid-1500s]
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.