fumble
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fum·ble
(fŭm′bəl)v. fum·bled, fum·bling, fum·bles
v.intr.
1. To touch or handle nervously or idly: fumble with a necktie.
2. To grope awkwardly to find or to accomplish something: fumble for a key.
3. To proceed awkwardly and uncertainly; blunder: fumble through a speech.
4.
a. Football To drop a ball that is in play.
b. Baseball To mishandle a ground ball.
v.tr.
1. To touch or handle clumsily or idly: "fumbled the skeleton key into the lock and turned it" (Bentley Dadmun).
2. To make a mess of; bungle. See Synonyms at botch.
3. To feel or make (one's way) awkwardly.
4.
a. Football To drop (a ball) while in play.
b. Baseball To mishandle (a ground ball).
n.
1. The act or an instance of fumbling.
2. Sports A ball that has been fumbled.
[Middle English fomelen, to grope.]
fum′bler n.
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
fumble
(ˈfʌmbəl)vb
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. (General Sporting Terms) to fail to catch or grasp (a ball, etc) cleanly
n
the act of fumbling
[C16: probably of Scandinavian origin; related to Swedish fumla]
ˈfumbler n
ˈfumblingly adv
ˈfumblingness n
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014
fum•ble
(ˈfʌm bəl)v. -bled, -bling,
n. v.i.
1. to feel or grope about clumsily: He fumbled in his pocket for the keys.
2. to fail to hold a ball after having touched it or carried it, as in a baseball or football game.
3. to do something clumsily or unsuccessfully; blunder or fail.
v.t. 4. to make, handle, etc., clumsily or ineffectively; botch: to fumble an attempt.
5. to fail to hold (a ball) after having touched it or carried it.
n. 6. the act of fumbling.
7. an act or instance of fumbling the ball.
[1500–10]
fum′bler, n.
fum′bling•ly, adv.
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.
fumble
Past participle: fumbled
Gerund: fumbling
| Imperative |
|---|
| fumble |
| fumble |
Collins English Verb Tables © HarperCollins Publishers 2011
fumble
This occurs when a runner loses the ball before being tackled; results in a free ball.
Dictionary of Unfamiliar Words by Diagram Group Copyright © 2008 by Diagram Visual Information Limited
ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:
Switch to new thesaurus
| Noun | 1. |  fumble - (sports) dropping the ball blooper, blunder, boo-boo, botch, bungle, flub, foul-up, pratfall, bloomer - an embarrassing mistake American football, American football game - a game played by two teams of 11 players on a rectangular field 100 yards long; teams try to get possession of the ball and advance it across the opponents goal line in a series of (running or passing) plays baseball, baseball game - a ball game played with a bat and ball between two teams of nine players; teams take turns at bat trying to score runs; "he played baseball in high school"; "there was a baseball game on every empty lot"; "there was a desire for National League ball in the area"; "play ball!" |
| Verb | 1. | fumble - feel about uncertainly or blindly; "She groped for her glasses in the darkness of the bedroom" |
| 2. | fumble - make one's way clumsily or blindly; "He fumbled towards the door" go across, pass, go through - go across or through; "We passed the point where the police car had parked"; "A terrible thought went through his mind" | |
| 3. | fumble - handle clumsily | |
| 4. |  fumble - make a mess of, destroy or ruin; "I botched the dinner and we had to eat out"; "the pianist screwed up the difficult passage in the second movement" | |
| 5. | fumble - drop or juggle or fail to play cleanly a grounder; "fumble a grounder" baseball, baseball game - a ball game played with a bat and ball between two teams of nine players; teams take turns at bat trying to score runs; "he played baseball in high school"; "there was a baseball game on every empty lot"; "there was a desire for National League ball in the area"; "play ball!" play - participate in games or sport; "We played hockey all afternoon"; "play cards"; "Pele played for the Brazilian teams in many important matches" |
Based on WordNet 3.0, Farlex clipart collection. © 2003-2012 Princeton University, Farlex Inc.
fumble
verb
1. grope, flounder, paw (informal), scrabble, feel around She crept from the bed and fumbled for her dressing gown.
noun
Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002
fumble
verb2. To proceed or perform in an unsteady, faltering manner:
The American Heritage® Roget's Thesaurus. Copyright © 2013, 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
TranslationsSelect a language:
Spanish / Español
fumble
[ˈfʌmbl]A. VT (= drop) → dejar caer; (= handle badly) → manosear, coger or (LAm) agarrar con torpeza
to fumble one's way along → ir a tientas
to fumble one's way along → ir a tientas
Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005
fumble
(ˈfambl) verb1. to use one's hands awkwardly and with difficulty. He fumbled with the key; She fumbled about in her bag for her key. buscar/revolver a tientas/torpemente, manejar torpemente
2. to drop a ball (clumsily), or fail to hold or catch it. dejar caer
Kernerman English Multilingual Dictionary © 2006-2013 K Dictionaries Ltd.