stumble
/ˈstʌmbəl/
Word Rarity
Rare
Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.42 in modern English
11
Scrabble Score
7
Letters
2
Syllables
7
Unique Chars
Meaning
noun
A fall, trip or substantial misstep.
Example Sentences
- "I went to his aid. As he said, a board in the floor was loose. His stepping on it unawares had caused his stumble."
- "Possibly Mr. Carrados was considering it from his own way round for he did not appear to notice anything in her stumble."
- "She owns up to early stumbles, such as bottles being mislabeled."
- "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."
- "He stumbled over a rock."
- "Last night, you drunkenly stumbled to the front door, waking up the whole house."
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”).