Dictionary

stumble en · NOUN

Pronunciation

• /ˈstʌmbəl/
• (US) audio
• /ˈstʊmbəl/ (Northern-England)

Etymology

Ultimately from Proto-Germanic *stam- (“to trip up; to stammer, stutter”), thereby related to German stumm (“mute”), Dutch stom (“dumb”). Doublet of stammer. Also related to verb in Dutch stommelen (“to walk silently”).

Meanings

1. A fall, trip or substantial misstep.
   • I went to his aid. As he said, a board in the floor was loose. His stepping on it unawares had caused his stumble. 1897, Richard Marsh, The Beetle:
2. An error or blunder.
   • Possibly Mr. Carrados was considering it from his own way round for he did not appear to notice anything in her stumble. 1934, Ernest Bramah, The Bravo of London:
   • She owns up to early stumbles, such as bottles being mislabeled. 2022 July 21, Emily Hell, “TikTok’s Pink Sauce chef defends her viral condiment”, in Washington Post:
3. A clumsy walk.
   • From the ground, Colombo’s port does not look like much. Those entering it are greeted by wire fences, walls dating back to colonial times and security posts. For mariners leaving the port after lonely nights on the high seas, the delights of the B52 Night Club and Stallion Pub lie a stumble away. 2013 June 8, “The new masters and commanders”, in The Economist, volume 407, number 8839, page 52:

Forms

Synonyms

thinko (a blunder) · fault (a blunder) · lapse (a blunder) · slip (a blunder) · blooper (a blunder) · defect (a blunder) · error (a blunder) · fluff (a blunder) · mistake (a blunder) · boo-boo (a blunder) · gaffe (a blunder) · faux pas (a blunder) · blunder (a blunder)

Translations (52)

grc σφάλμα (a fall or trip) · cs zakopnutí (a fall or trip) · de Patzer (an error or blunder) · pl potknięcie się (a fall or trip) · pl potknięcie (an error or blunder) · cs klopýtnutí (a fall or trip) · fr faux pas (a fall or trip) · es tropiezo (an error or blunder) · da fejl (an error or blunder) · ar عَثْرَة (a fall or trip) · bg погрешна стъпка (an error or blunder) · de Stolpern (a fall or trip) · oc escarlimpada (a fall or trip) · de Fehltritt (a fall or trip) · es desliz (an error or blunder) · fr chute (a fall or trip) · fi virhe (an error or blunder) · grc διάπτωμα (an error or blunder) · cmn 失足 (a fall or trip) · it scivolone (a fall or trip) · es torpeza (an error or blunder) · bg спъване (a fall or trip) · ka ბორძიკი (a fall or trip) · fa سکندر (a fall or trip) · es traspié (a fall or trip) · sk potknutie sa (a fall or trip) · oc contrapàs (a fall or trip) · es tropezón (a fall or trip) · bg запъване (a fall or trip) · da fejltrin (an error or blunder) · es trompezón (a fall or trip) · grc πταῖσμα (a fall or trip) · ka წაბორძიკება (a fall or trip) · fa سکندری (a fall or trip) · ru спотыка́ние (a fall or trip) · da snublen (a fall or trip) · fi moka (an error or blunder) · de Schnitzer (an error or blunder) · ru про́мах (an error or blunder) · nl struikelen (a fall or trip) · pt tropeço (a fall or trip) · es trompezón (an error or blunder) · fr bourde (an error or blunder) · de Ausrutscher (an error or blunder) · sk zakopnutie (a fall or trip) · ar تَلَعْثَمَ (an error or blunder) · cmn 過失 /过失 (an error or blunder) · de Fehler (an error or blunder) · hu botlás (an error or blunder) · hu botlás (a fall or trip) · fi kompastus (a fall or trip) · ca ensopegada (a fall or trip)

stumble en · VERB

Pronunciation

• /ˈstʌmbəl/
• (US) audio
• /ˈstʊmbəl/ (Northern-England)

Etymology

Ultimately from Proto-Germanic *stam- (“to trip up; to stammer, stutter”), thereby related to German stumm (“mute”), Dutch stom (“dumb”). Doublet of stammer. Also related to verb in Dutch stommelen (“to walk silently”).

Meanings

1. (intransitive) To misstep; to walk or run clumsily; to trip or fall.
   • He stumbled over a rock.
   • I try to say goodbye and I choke (yeah) / Try to walk away and I stumble / Though I try to hide it, it's clear / My world crumbles when you are not near 1999, Macy Gray, “I Try”, in On How Life Is:
   • I stumbled along through the young pines and huckleberry bushes. Pretty soon I struck into a sort of path that, I cal'lated, might lead to the road I was hunting for. 1913, Joseph C[rosby] Lincoln, chapter I, in Mr. Pratt’s Patients, New York, N.Y.; London: D[aniel] Appleton and Company, →OCLC:
   • Last night, you drunkenly stumbled to the front door, waking up the whole house.
   • He stumbled up the dark avenue. 1819 December 20 (indicated as 1820), Walter Scott, Ivanhoe; a Romance. […], volume (please specify |volume=I to III), Edinburgh: […] Archibald Constable and Co.; London: Hurst, Robinson, and Co. […], →OCLC:
2. (intransitive) To make mistakes, to have trouble.
   • I always stumble over verbs in Spanish.
   • […] they are out of the way through strong drinke, they erre in vision, they stumble in iudgement. 1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Isaiah 28:7:
3. (transitive) To cause to stumble or trip.
   • Slowly, I turned around and the shock of it stumbled me back a few steps. 2017, Jacqueline Druga, Sleepers, page 39:
4. (transitive) To mislead, to cause to err or fall.
   • One thing more stumbles me in the very foundation of this hypothesis. a. 1705, John Locke, “An Examination of P[ère] Malebranche’s Opinion of Seeing All Things in God”, in Posthumous Works of Mr. John Locke: […], London: […] A[wnsham] and J[ohn] Churchill, […], published 1706, →OCLC:
   • False and dazzling fires to stumble men. 1644, John Milton, Areopagitica; a Speech of Mr. John Milton for the Liberty of Unlicenc’d Printing, to the Parlament of England, London: [s.n.], →OCLC:
5. (intransitive) To make a discovery unexpectedly or accidentally; to chance, come, or happen (upon a person or thing) (with onto, across, on, upon).
   • Forth as she waddled in the brake, / A grey goose stumbled on a snake. 1754, Christopher Smart, Snake:
   • It ſeems more probable that Ovid vvas either the Confident of ſome other paſſion, or that he had ſtumbled by ſome inadvertency, upon the privacies of Livia, and ſeen her in a Bath: […] 1680, John Dryden, “The Preface to Ovid’s Epistles”, in Ovid, Ovid’s Epistles, […], London: […] Jacob Tonson […], →OCLC:
   • We stumbled onto the answer without even trying.

Forms

Deriveds

stumble across · stumble-drunk · stumble into · stumble against · stumble on · stumblebum · stumbler · stumble upon · stumble onto · stumblesome · stumbly

Relateds

stumbling block

Synonyms

trip up · err · confound · blunder

Translations (138)

es trompezar (to cause to stumble or trip) · es tropezar (to trip or fall) · fi kompuroida (to trip or fall) · hu vánszorog (to walk clumsily) · hu botorkál (to walk clumsily) · sw kwaa (to trip or fall) · mi tūtuki (to trip or fall) · da begå fejl (to make a mistake or have trouble) · pt cometer um erro (to make a mistake or have trouble) · cs zakopnout (to trip or fall) · cs klopýtnout (to trip or fall) · ca entrebancar-se (to trip or fall) · ru оступа́ться (to make a mistake or have trouble) · hu akadozik (to make a mistake or have trouble) · it inciampare (to trip or fall) · egy M16-M16-D54 (to trip or fall) · es trompezar (to trip or fall) · nrf trébutchi (to trip or fall) · pt bater com um obstáculo (to trip or fall) · tr tökezlemek (to make a mistake or have trouble) · sk potknúť sa (to trip or fall) · ba һөрлөгөү (to trip or fall) · hu betéved (to walk clumsily) · es trastrabillar (to make a mistake or have trouble) · uk спотикнутися (to trip or fall) · txb trāpp- (to trip or fall) · qu mitk'ay (to trip or fall) · sv snubbla (to trip or fall) · sk zakopnúť (to trip or fall) · ru ошиба́ться (to make a mistake or have trouble) · fo snáva (to trip or fall) · fa سکرفیدن (to trip or fall) · cmn 犯錯 /犯错 (to make a mistake or have trouble) · uk спіткнутися (to trip or fall) · lv klupt (to trip or fall) · bg спъвам се (to trip or fall) · bg греша (to make a mistake or have trouble) · ca ensopegar (to trip or fall) · cmn 蹣跚而行 /蹒跚而行 (to walk clumsily) · fr broncher (to trip or fall) · it scivolare (to trip or fall) · de staksen (to walk clumsily) · mi tatutu (to trip or fall) · eo stumbli (to trip or fall) · pt tropeçar (to trip or fall) · es titubear (to make a mistake or have trouble) · es dar un mal paso (to trip or fall) · bg препъвам се (to trip or fall) · ru оступа́ться (to trip or fall) · io faletar (to trip or fall) · it sbagliarsi (to make a mistake or have trouble) · hu botlik (to trip or fall) · ary عتر (to trip or fall) · tr tökezlemek (to trip or fall) · es trastrabillear (to make a mistake or have trouble) · es trastabillar (to trip or fall) · hu belebotlik (to trip or fall) · ca entrepassegar (to trip or fall) · es trastabillear (to cause to stumble or trip) · ba һөрөнөү (to trip or fall) · pt esbarrar (to trip or fall) · hu átesik (to trip or fall) · es tropezar (to make a mistake or have trouble) · es dar un paso en falso (to trip or fall) · de stolpern (to trip or fall) · uk спотика́тися (to trip or fall) · es trompezar (to make a mistake or have trouble) · got 𐌲𐌰𐍃𐍄𐌹𐌲𐌵𐌰𐌽 (to trip or fall) · ko 넘어질 뻔하다 (to make a mistake or have trouble) · ca fer un pas en fals (to trip or fall) · da snuble (to trip or fall) · ko 넘어질 뻔하다 (to trip or fall) · hu támolyog (to walk clumsily) · gl tropezar (to trip or fall) · hu botladozik (to walk clumsily) · cmn 絆倒 /绊倒 (to trip or fall) · es trastrabillear (to cause to stumble or trip) · te కాలుజారు (to trip or fall) · wa estrebukî (to trip or fall) · es trastabillear (to trip or fall) · fi kompastua (to trip or fall) · es trastrabillar (to cause to stumble or trip) · mi tapepe (to make a mistake or have trouble) · es dar un traspié (to trip or fall) · mt għotor (to trip or fall) · nb snuble (to trip or fall) · es trastabillear (to make a mistake or have trouble) · gl embelecar (to trip or fall) · es trastabillar (to make a mistake or have trouble) · grc πταίω (to trip or fall) · pl potknąć się (to trip or fall) · eo faleti (to trip or fall) · es dar un traspié (to cause to stumble or trip) · hu megbotlik (to trip or fall) · ja 躓く (to trip or fall) · mi tatu (to trip or fall) · ga tuisligh (to trip or fall) · eo falpuŝiĝi (to trip or fall) · om gufachuu (to trip or fall) · ca entropessar (to trip or fall) · io butar (to trip or fall) · pt topar (to trip or fall) · es trastrabillar (to trip or fall) · es tropezar (to cause to stumble or trip) · da fejle (to make a mistake or have trouble) · fr faire un faux pas (to trip or fall) · nl strompelen (to trip or fall) · hu tántorog (to walk clumsily) · es trabarse (to make a mistake or have trouble) · nl struikelen (to trip or fall) · nn snubla (to trip or fall) · es topar (to trip or fall) · ca entrebancar-se (to make a mistake or have trouble) · wa si trebouxhî (to trip or fall) · es dar traspiés (to trip or fall) · ba абыныу (to trip or fall) · es trastrabillear (to trip or fall) · hu megbicsaklik (to make a mistake or have trouble) · it incontrare (to trip or fall) · ru спотыка́ться (to trip or fall) · hu belebicsaklik (to make a mistake or have trouble) · fr trébucher (to trip or fall) · eo stumbli (to make a mistake or have trouble) · ar عَثَرَ (to trip or fall) · it imbattersi (to trip or fall) · pt tropeçar (to make a mistake or have trouble) · sv snava (to trip or fall) · io pedobutar (to trip or fall) · es atrancarse (to make a mistake or have trouble) · io mispazar (to trip or fall) · az büdrəmək (to trip or fall) · mi tapepa (to trip or fall) · es caminar torpemente (to walk clumsily) · pl potykać się (to trip or fall) · es trastabillar (to cause to stumble or trip) · ary تعتر (to trip or fall) · is hnjóta (to trip or fall) · it incespicare (to walk clumsily)