Definitions for fumble
ˈfʌm bəlfum·ble

Princeton's WordNetRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. fumble, muffverb

   (sports) dropping the ball

2. grope, fumbleverb

   feel about uncertainly or blindly

   "She groped for her glasses in the darkness of the bedroom"

3. fumble, blunderverb

   make one's way clumsily or blindly

   "He fumbled towards the door"

4. fumbleverb

   handle clumsily

5. botch, bodge, bumble, fumble, botch up, muff, blow, flub, screw up, ball up, spoil, muck up, bungle, fluff, bollix, bollix up, bollocks, bollocks up, bobble, mishandle, louse up, foul up, mess up, fuck upverb

   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"

6. fumbleverb

   drop or juggle or fail to play cleanly a grounder

   "fumble a grounder"

WiktionaryRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. fumblenoun

   A ball etc. that has been dropped

2. fumbleverb

   To idly touch or nervously handle

3. fumbleverb

   To grope awkwardly in trying to find something

4. fumbleverb

   To blunder uncertainly

5. fumbleverb

   To drop a ball or a baton etc.

6. Etymology: Origin uncertain; perhaps from a Scandinavian source. Compare Old Norse falma, Swedish fumla, Danish fumle, German fummeln.

Samuel Johnson's DictionaryRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. To Fumbleverb

   To manage aukwardly.

   As many farewels as be stars in heav’n,
   With distinct breath and consign’d kisses to them,
   He fumbles up all in one loose adieu. William Shakespeare.

   His greasy bald-pate choir
   Came fumbling o’er the heads, in such an agony,
   They told ’em false for fear. John Dryden, Spanish Fryar.

2. To FUMBLEverb

   Etymology: fommelen, Dutch.

   1. To attempt any thing aukwardly or ungainly.

   Our mechanick theists will have their atoms never once to have fumbled in these their motions, nor to have produced any inept system. Ralph Cudworth.

   2. To puzzle; to strain in perplexity.

   Am not I a friend to help you out? You would have been fumbling half an hour for this excuse. John Dryden, Spanish Fryar.

   3. To play childishly.

   I saw him fumble with the sheets, and play with flowers, and smile upon his finger’s end. William Shakespeare, Henry V.

WikipediaRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. Fumble

   A fumble in gridiron football occurs when a player who has possession and control of the ball loses it before being downed (tackled), scoring, or going out of bounds. By rule, it is any act other than passing, kicking, punting, or successful handing that results in loss of ball possession by a player. A fumble may be forced by a defensive player who either grabs or punches the ball or butts the ball with their helmet (a move called "tackling the ball"). A fumbled ball may be recovered and advanced by either team (except, in American football, after the two-minute warning in either half or 4th down, when the fumbler is the only offensive player allowed to advance the ball, otherwise the ball is ruled dead at the spot of fumble, except when it is recovered for a loss. A fumble is one of three events that can cause a turnover (the other two being an interception or a turnover on downs). Under American rules a fumble may be confused with a muff. A muff occurs where a player drops a ball that he does not have clear possession of, such as while attempting to catch a lateral pass or improperly fielding a kicking play such as a punt (a player cannot "fumble" a loose ball). Ball security is the ability of a player to maintain control over the football during play and thus avoid a fumble. Thus, losing possession of the ball via a fumble includes not only dropping the ball before being downed; but, also having a ball taken away, or “stripped” from the runner's possession before being downed.

ChatGPTRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. fumble

   Fumble generally refers to mishandle due to lack of focus or skill, resulting in loss of control or possession. It can be used in various contexts such as sports, where a player loses possession of the ball, or in everyday life to describe a clumsy action or mistake.

Webster DictionaryRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. Fumbleverb

   to feel or grope about; to make awkward attempts to do or find something

2. Fumbleverb

   to grope about in perplexity; to seek awkwardly; as, to fumble for an excuse

3. Fumbleverb

   to handle much; to play childishly; to turn over and over

4. Fumbleverb

   to handle or manage awkwardly; to crowd or tumble together

5. Etymology: [Akin to D. fommelen to crumple, fumble, Sw. fumla to fusuble, famla to grope, Dan. famle to grope, fumble, Icel. falme, AS. folm palm of the hand. See Feel, and cf. Fanble, Palm.]

WikidataRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. Fumble

   A fumble in American and Canadian football occurs when a player, who has possession and control of the ball loses it before being downed or scoring. By rule, it is any act other than passing, kicking or successful handing that results in loss of player possession. A fumble may be forced by a defensive player who either grabs or punches the ball or butts the ball with his helmet. A fumbled ball may be recovered and advanced by either team. It is one of three events that can cause a turnover, where possession of the ball can change during play. Under American rules a fumble may be confused with a muff. A muff occurs where a player drops a ball that he does not have possession of, such as while attempting to catch a lateral pass or improperly fielding a kicking play such as a punt. Ball security is the ability of a player to maintain control over the football during play and thus avoid a fumble.

Chambers 20th Century DictionaryRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. Fumble

   fum′bl, v.i. to grope about awkwardly: to handle awkwardly: to stammer in speech: to find by groping.—v.t. to manage awkwardly.—n. Fum′bler.—adv. Fum′blingly. [Dut. fommelen, to fumble; cf. Dan. famle, Ice. fâlma, to grope about.]

Matched Categories

1. • Baseball
   • Handle
   • Pass
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Anagrams for fumble »

1. beflum

How to pronounce fumble?

1. Alex

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How to say fumble in sign language?

Numerology

1. Chaldean Numerology

   The numerical value of fumble in Chaldean Numerology is: 1

2. Pythagorean Numerology

   The numerical value of fumble in Pythagorean Numerology is: 5

Examples of fumble in a Sentence

1. Penn State coach James Franklin:

   THE TAKEAWAY Penn State : The mistakes proved costly. Penn State coach James Franklin will be on major clean-up duty this week after seeing three red-zone possessions end without points, three missed field goals, two interceptions, one lost fumble, a muffed punt and a fumbled kickoff return in addition to Fords late TD run and the late defensive breakdowns. Indiana : This victory is a huge step for the program. Allen know the Hoosiers need to start beating ranked teams more consistently, and this one came on a day the defense played reasonably well and the offense managed only 221 yards 19:35 of possession time. POLL IMPLICATIONS Penn State will slip in the Top 25, perhaps precipitously. The defense played well but broke down late while the offense and special teams werent anywhere near championship caliber. Its turnovers and penalties.

2. James Robinson:

   When [a fumble] happens and you’re out for that long, you’ve gotta feel that way, i was just waiting my turn to get back in the game and it didn’t really come until the third quarter.

3. John Heisman:

   Gentlemen, it is better to have died as a small boy than to fumble this football.

4. Martin Charlton:

   There is no textbook you can go buy. There is no self-help guide. You just sort of fumble your way through it, you're figuring it out every day.

5. Tanner Mordecai:

   We kind of shot ourselves in the foot, specifically me, that fumble and the interception could have easily been avoided.

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References

1. ^ Princeton's WordNet
   http://wordnetweb.princeton.edu/perl/webwn?s=fumble
2. ^ Wiktionary
   https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Fumble
3. ^ Samuel Johnson's Dictionary
   https://johnsonsdictionaryonline.com/views/search.php?term=fumble
4. ^ Wikipedia
   https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fumble
5. ^ ChatGPT
   https://chat.openai.com
6. ^ Webster Dictionary
   https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/fumble
7. ^ Wikidata
   https://www.wikidata.org/w/index.php?search=fumble
8. ^ Chambers 20th Century Dictionary
   https://www.gutenberg.org/files/37683/37683-h/37683-h.htm#:~:text=fumble