blunder
1 of 2verb
blun·der ˈblən-dər 
blundered; blundering ˈblən-d(ə-)riŋ
intransitive verb
1
: to move unsteadily or confusedly
In their exhaustion they often blundered against each other …
Norman Mailer
Norman Mailer2
: to make a mistake through stupidity, ignorance, or carelessness
blundered by not acting sooner
transitive verb
1
: to utter stupidly, confusedly, or thoughtlessly
blundered an apology
2
: to make a stupid, careless, or thoughtless mistake in
… blundering matters through ignorance … Rafael Sabatini
Rafael Sabatini blunderer
ˈblən-dər-ər
noun blunder
2 of 2noun
: a gross error or mistake resulting usually from stupidity, ignorance, or carelessness
a costly tactical blunder
Synonyms
Verb
- boob [British]
- err
- flub
- fluff
- foul up
- fumble
- goof (up)
- louse up
- mess (up)
- screw up
- slip up
- stumble
- trip
Noun
- bobble
- boo-boo
- boob [British]
- brick
- clanger [British]
- clinker
- error
- fault
- flub
- fluff
- fumble
- gaff
- gaffe
- goof
- inaccuracy
- lapse
- miscue
- misstep
- mistake
- oversight
- screwup
- slip
- slipup
- stumble
- trip
See all Synonyms & Antonyms 
Example Sentences
Verb We blundered along through the woods until we finally found the trail. Another skier blundered into his path. The government blundered by not acting sooner. Noun The accident was the result of a series of blunders. fixed a minor blunder in the advertising flyer
Recent Examples on the Web Stephen Collinson, CNN, 28 Mar. 2022 Special teams blunder aside, Kevin Stefanski and the Browns offense squandered two potential go-ahead opportunities. Ellis L. Williams, cleveland, 13 Sep. 2021 But what dollar hawks didn't calculate was that the U.S. would jump out to such a huge lead in vaccinating Americans, while its biggest trading partners in Asia and the eurozone would blunder along. Bernhard Warner, Fortune, 5 May 2021 The soil is full of pathogenic fungi just waiting for a nice juicy fire ant to blunder into them. Jennifer Frazer, Scientific American, 21 Nov. 2020 The only points for Leach and Mississippi State during the 24-2 loss to Kentucky came on a Wildcats special teams blunder that resulted in a safety. Matt Zenitz | Mzenitz@al.com, al, 13 Oct. 2020 Ant death spirals break only when enough workers accidentally blunder away, creating trails that lead the spiraling workers to safety. Ed Yong, The Atlantic, 9 Sep. 2020 Yearling black bears blunder over the asphalt in search of their own territories. Ben Goldfarb, The Atlantic, 6 July 2020 Some pointed to other calls Goldman strategists blundered in the past, while others said Wall Street banks were too slow to catch onto the trend. Vildana Hajric, Bloomberg.com, 27 May 2020 Michael Schuman, The Atlantic, 11 Aug. 2022 Despite her last single being a blunder, her catalog remains unblemished. Katie Atkinson, Billboard, 23 Aug. 2022 The publisher may lose a lot of money on those $0.06 pre-purchase sales, but the cash has probably already been recouped from the additional pre-purchases coverage of the blunder no doubt generated. Matthew Humphries, PCMAG, 17 Aug. 2022 But financial advisors say all couples can learn a lesson from the A-Lister’s blunder: discuss major financial decisions together prior to making them. Kaitlyn Koterbski, Fortune, 11 Aug. 2022 To go with the defensive blunder, Grossman finished 0-for-3 with one strikeout and is batting .202 in 68 games this season. Evan Petzold, Detroit Free Press, 10 July 2022 But one major blunder that turned the shoreline into a killing field was shockingly basic. Catherine Musemeche, Smithsonian Magazine, 7 July 2022 This is a time of divisiveness, an era when the slightest blunder triggers strong censure, often far exceeding the gravity of the misstep. Chip Bell, Forbes, 15 June 2022 Workers moved the woman's remains to the correct grave earlier this year after a family member alerted staff at the Arkansas State Veterans Cemetery in North Little Rock to the blunder, state officials confirmed last week. Will Langhorne, Arkansas Online, 12 June 2022 See More
Verb
And in some of the criticism there was a sense Republicans were playing into the conservative media trope that Biden is old, is not in full control and could blunder the US into a war. Stephen Collinson, CNN, 28 Mar. 2022 Special teams blunder aside, Kevin Stefanski and the Browns offense squandered two potential go-ahead opportunities. Ellis L. Williams, cleveland, 13 Sep. 2021 But what dollar hawks didn't calculate was that the U.S. would jump out to such a huge lead in vaccinating Americans, while its biggest trading partners in Asia and the eurozone would blunder along. Bernhard Warner, Fortune, 5 May 2021 The soil is full of pathogenic fungi just waiting for a nice juicy fire ant to blunder into them. Jennifer Frazer, Scientific American, 21 Nov. 2020 The only points for Leach and Mississippi State during the 24-2 loss to Kentucky came on a Wildcats special teams blunder that resulted in a safety. Matt Zenitz | Mzenitz@al.com, al, 13 Oct. 2020 Ant death spirals break only when enough workers accidentally blunder away, creating trails that lead the spiraling workers to safety. Ed Yong, The Atlantic, 9 Sep. 2020 Yearling black bears blunder over the asphalt in search of their own territories. Ben Goldfarb, The Atlantic, 6 July 2020 Some pointed to other calls Goldman strategists blundered in the past, while others said Wall Street banks were too slow to catch onto the trend. Vildana Hajric, Bloomberg.com, 27 May 2020 Noun
The policy of engagement with China that Biden advocated in 1979 is maligned as a colossal blunder dreamed up by naive ivory-tower elites. Michael Schuman, The Atlantic, 11 Aug. 2022 Despite her last single being a blunder, her catalog remains unblemished. Katie Atkinson, Billboard, 23 Aug. 2022 The publisher may lose a lot of money on those $0.06 pre-purchase sales, but the cash has probably already been recouped from the additional pre-purchases coverage of the blunder no doubt generated. Matthew Humphries, PCMAG, 17 Aug. 2022 But financial advisors say all couples can learn a lesson from the A-Lister’s blunder: discuss major financial decisions together prior to making them. Kaitlyn Koterbski, Fortune, 11 Aug. 2022 To go with the defensive blunder, Grossman finished 0-for-3 with one strikeout and is batting .202 in 68 games this season. Evan Petzold, Detroit Free Press, 10 July 2022 But one major blunder that turned the shoreline into a killing field was shockingly basic. Catherine Musemeche, Smithsonian Magazine, 7 July 2022 This is a time of divisiveness, an era when the slightest blunder triggers strong censure, often far exceeding the gravity of the misstep. Chip Bell, Forbes, 15 June 2022 Workers moved the woman's remains to the correct grave earlier this year after a family member alerted staff at the Arkansas State Veterans Cemetery in North Little Rock to the blunder, state officials confirmed last week. Will Langhorne, Arkansas Online, 12 June 2022 See More Word History
Etymology
Verb
Middle English blundren, probably of Scandinavian origin; akin to Old Norse blunda to shut one's eyes, doze, Norwegian dialect blundra
Noun
noun derivative of blunder entry 1
First Known Use
Verb
14th century, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1
Noun
1681, in the meaning defined above
Kids Definition
blunder 1 of 2
verb
blun·der ˈblən-dər
blundered; blundering
1
: to move in a clumsy way
2
: to make a mistake
blunder
2 of 2noun
: a bad or stupid mistake
blunder 1 of 2
noun
as in mistake
an unintentional departure from truth or accuracy fixed a minor blunder in the advertising flyer Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
- mistake
- error
- flub
- gaffe
- misstep
- miscue
- stumble
- fumble
- inaccuracy
- screwup
- goof
- trip
- slipup
- gaff
- brick
- lapse
- clanger
- bobble
- fault
- boob
- boo-boo
- slip
- oversight
- blooper
- fluff
- pratfall
- clinker
- snafu
- misunderstanding
- misjudgment
- howler
- miscalculation
- misstatement
- misreading
- misinterpretation
- misconstruction
- foul-up
- bloomer
- misconception
- miscomprehension
- boner
- misapprehension
- misdescription
- misimpression
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- precision
- accuracy
- exactness
- correctness
- preciseness
- strictness
- perfection
- exactitude
- infallibility
- inerrancy
blunder
2 of 2verb
1
as in to fumble
to make a mistake even though the prosecution had blundered several times in presenting its case, it ultimately prevailed Synonyms & Similar Words
- fumble
- stumble
- mistake
- trip
- flub
- slip up
- err
- boob
- screw up
- foul up
- fluff
- misunderstand
- bungle
- nod
- louse up
- botch
- miscue
- drop the ball
- goof (up)
- lay an egg
- murder
- misjudge
- miscount
- miscalculate
- muff
- misconceive
- bobble
- butcher
- foozle
- mangle
- mess (up)
- misdeem
- misconstrue
- mishandle
- misinterpret
- misgauge
2
as in to stumble
to proceed or act clumsily or ineffectually blundered his way through an acceptance speech Synonyms & Similar Words
- stumble
- struggle
- shuffle
- flounder
- bumble
- fumble
- lurch
- limp
- trudge
- jog
- falter
- reel
- muddle
- lumber
- welter
- plod
- sway
- shamble
- flog
- stagger
- wallow
- totter
- teeter
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- fly
- coast
- glide
- sail
- zoom
- kilt
- zip
Synonym Chooser
Some common synonyms of blunder are error, lapse, mistake, and slip. While all these words mean "a departure from what is true, right, or proper," blunder regularly imputes stupidity or ignorance as a cause and connotes some degree of blame.
diplomatic blunders
The synonyms error and blunder are sometimes interchangeable, but error suggests the existence of a standard or guide and a straying from the right course through failure to make effective use of this.
procedural errors
The meanings of lapse and blunder largely overlap; however, lapse stresses forgetfulness, weakness, or inattention as a cause.
a lapse in judgment
The words mistake and blunder are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, mistake implies misconception or inadvertence and usually expresses less criticism than error.
dialed the wrong number by mistake
While in some cases nearly identical to blunder, slip stresses inadvertence or accident and applies especially to trivial but embarrassing mistakes.
a slip of the tongue