Etymology
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bumble (v.)

"to flounder, blunder," 1530s, probably of imitative origin. Related: Bumbled; bumbler; bumbling. Bumble-puppy (1801) was a name for various outdoor sports and games.

Bumble

"self-important petty official," 1856, from the name of the fussy, pompous, stupid beadle in Dickens' "Oliver Twist." Related: Bumbledom.

Entries linking to Bumble

bumbling (adj.)

"confused, blundering, awkward," 1886, present-participle adjective from bumble (v.).

fumble (v.)

mid-15c., "handle clumsily," possibly from Old Norse falma "to fumble, grope." Similar words in Scandinavian and North Sea Germanic (Swedish fumla; Dutch fommelen) suggest onomatopoeia from a sound felt to indicate clumsiness (compare bumble, stumble, and obsolete English famble, fimble of roughly the same meaning). Intransitive sense "do or seek awkwardly" is from 1530s. Sense in football is from 1889. Related: Fumbled; fumbling.

updated on October 14, 2021

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Dictionary entries near bumble

bulrush

bulwark

bum

bumbailiff

bumble

Bumble

bumble-bee

bumbling

bumf

bummer

bump

© 2001-2023 Douglas Harper