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stumble Definition

stum·ble (stum′bəl)

intransitive verb -·bled, -·bling

  1. to trip or miss one's step in walking, running, etc.
  2. to walk or go in an unsteady or awkward manner, as from age, weakness, etc.
  3. to speak, act, or proceed in a confused, blundering manner to stumble through a speech
  4. to fall into sin or error; do wrong
  5. to come by chance; happen to stumble across a clue

Etymology: ME stumblen < Scand, as in Norw dial. stumba, ON stumra < IE base *stem-, to bump against, hamper > stammer, Ger stumm, Du stom, mute

transitive verb

  1. to cause to stumble
  2. to puzzle or perplex; confound

noun

  1. the act of stumbling
  2. a blunder, error, or sin

stumble Related Forms

stum′·bler noun stum′·blingly adverb

stumble Synonyms

stumble

v.

  1. To move in a stumbling manner

    blunder, flounder, lurch, falter; see waver.

  2. To trip

    pitch, tilt, topple; see fall 1, trip 1.

stumble Usage Examples

Object

  • accross: I have stumbled accross this site as it promised to send me a free t-shirt with my favorite goat printed on the front. hmmm.
  • block: Internet trade however, has some stumbling blocks to its growth.

Preposition: on

truth: Questioning Charlie's grip on sanity, Vincent dismisses the boy's ranting, until he himself stumbles on the truth.

Preposition: at

hurdle: And I fear that this new production of Oden von Horvath's 1931 melodrama stumbles at both hurdles.

Modifying Another Word

  • blindly: Pushing Edward aside he stumbled blindly into one of the choir rooms, slamming the door behind him.
  • accidentally: You cannot accidentally stumble across a pin protected subscription based channel.
  • inadvertently: Last year I inadvertently stumbled on a possible explanation.
  • backward: I stumbled backward, the book dropping from my hand.
  • suddenly: When Pat suddenly stumbles on a disused manhole behind a washing machine, she is hopeful she has found a solution.
  • literally: Some of my research team had been on survey near Southwold and literally stumbled on a skeleton.

Followed by an intransitive particle

  • across: Does no-one buy an album from a support band they stumble across, except me?
  • upon: I happen to stumble upon your site quite by accident.
  • along: By the time I got home, I was stumbling along, trying to shelter my right eye from the sunlight.
  • around: For several days I stumbled around in an agony of fear.
  • over: I could feel myself blushing and stumbling over my words and I thought about her a lot.
  • on: Wire caught and tripped them and tangled them, but they stumbled on.

Followed by a transitive particle

over: His breath tore raggedly through his lungs as he slipped and stumbled over rocks in the darkness.

Preposition: in

dark: As we stumble about in the dark, we will never be able to find our way home.

Preposition: from

crisis: Politicians stumble from one transport crisis to the next.

Preposition: across

something: Recently, I stumbled across something on the internet.

Browse dictionary entries near stumble

  1. ‹ stum
  2. ‹ stultify
  3. ‹ stull
  4. ‹ stuffy
  5. ‹ stuffing box
  6. ‹ stuffing
  7. ‹ stuffer
  8. ‹ stuffed shirt
  9. ‹ stuffed
  10. ‹ stuff bit
  1. stumblebum ›
  2. stumbling block ›
  3. stump ›
  4. stumpage ›
  5. stumped ›
  6. stumpy ›
  7. stun ›
  8. stun gun ›
  9. stung ›
  10. stunk ›