stumbled; stumbling
ˈstəm-b(ə-)liŋ 
1
a
: to fall into sin or waywardness
b
: to make an error : blunder
c
: to come to an obstacle to belief
2
: to trip in walking or running
3
a
: to walk unsteadily or clumsily
b
: to speak or act in a hesitant or faltering manner
4
a
: to come unexpectedly or by chance
stumble onto the truth
b
: to fall or move carelessly
Examples of stumble in a Sentence
Verb
I stumbled on the uneven pavement.
The horse stumbled and almost fell.
He stumbled drunkenly across the room.
He stumbled over to the table.
I heard him stumble over the unfamiliar words.
She stumbled through an apology.
The economy has stumbled in recent months.
Noun
was his hurtful remark a regrettable stumble, or was it made with artful intention?
has bones so brittle that a minor stumble could result in a serious break
Recent Examples on the Web
Garth Friesen, Forbes, 28 Feb. 2025
Those concerns came to a head during Biden's debate against now-President Donald Trump in June, when Biden sounded hoarse and appeared to stumble through several answers.
—Dan Perry, Newsweek, 28 Feb. 2025
Aditya Soni, USA TODAY, 27 Feb. 2025
The latest chapter in this stumble toward mediocrity was one of the more predictable ones.
—Anthony Slater, The Athletic, 20 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for stumble
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show current usage.
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Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
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Verb
However, the Indian stock market has stumbled recently, with the BSE 500 shedding 19% from its recent peak last September—this after climbing 14.8% in 2024 and 25.1% in 2023.
—Garth Friesen, Forbes, 28 Feb. 2025
Those concerns came to a head during Biden's debate against now-President Donald Trump in June, when Biden sounded hoarse and appeared to stumble through several answers.
—Dan Perry, Newsweek, 28 Feb. 2025
Noun
Still, a recent stumble in January after DeepSeek unveiled lower-cost AI models wiped $593 billion from Nvidia's market cap — a record one-day market value loss that underscored the risks of the AI trade.
—Aditya Soni, USA TODAY, 27 Feb. 2025
The latest chapter in this stumble toward mediocrity was one of the more predictable ones.
—Anthony Slater, The Athletic, 20 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for stumble
Cite this Entry
“Stumble.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/stumble. Accessed 4 Mar. 2025.
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