bungle
verb
bun·gle ˈbəŋ-gəl 
bungled; bungling ˈbəŋ-g(ə-)liŋ
intransitive verb
: to act or work clumsily and awkwardly
bungled badly in the campaign
transitive verb
: mishandle, botch
bungle a job
bungled the investigation
bungle noun
bungler
ˈbəŋ-g(ə-)lər
noun 
Synonyms
- blow
- bobble
- boggle
- bollix (up)
- boot
- botch
- bugger (up)
- bumble
- butcher
- dub
- flub
- fluff
- foozle
- foul up
- fumble
- goof (up)
- louse up
- mangle
- mess (up)
- muck up
- muff
- murder
- screw up
See all Synonyms & Antonyms 
Example Sentences
The government bungled badly in planning the campaign. bungled the job the first time she tried to do it
Recent Examples on the Web But the early episodes bungle their dynamic, with an unspecific friendship that's relegated to the sidelines. 
Darren Franich, EW.com, 19 Aug. 2022 Yet no matter how true Adam Smith’s theories have proven to be, politicians and corporate leaders bungle the idea with depressing regularity. Rich Karlgaard, Forbes, 12 Aug. 2022 The fifth-round draft choice — no, Cincinnati did not bungle a pick on a kicker here — the kid has hit all 12 of his field goals, including four in the wild-card round, then winners at Tennessee and Kansas City. Barry Wilner, ajc, 12 Feb. 2022 Attorney Kim Foxx managed to bungle things up early by exchanging texts with a relative of Smollett’s, and everything got weirder from there. Rex Huppke, chicagotribune.com, 10 Dec. 2021 That is a question for the next president of baseball operations to solve, and the Mets cannot afford to bungle another job search. New York Times, 1 Oct. 2021 Other members of the board wanted to make sure the state didn’t bungle the reopening. Kiera Feldman, Los Angeles Times, 20 May 2021 Don’t mess around and bungle the best quarterback situation the Seahawks franchise has ever seen. Mike Jones, USA TODAY, 26 Feb. 2021 The on-field product was a disaster, only in part because of a season-ending injury to quarterback Dak Prescott, and the new coach found something new to bungle almost every week. Mike Finger, ExpressNews.com, 5 Jan. 2021 See More
Darren Franich, EW.com, 19 Aug. 2022 Yet no matter how true Adam Smith’s theories have proven to be, politicians and corporate leaders bungle the idea with depressing regularity. Rich Karlgaard, Forbes, 12 Aug. 2022 The fifth-round draft choice — no, Cincinnati did not bungle a pick on a kicker here — the kid has hit all 12 of his field goals, including four in the wild-card round, then winners at Tennessee and Kansas City. Barry Wilner, ajc, 12 Feb. 2022 Attorney Kim Foxx managed to bungle things up early by exchanging texts with a relative of Smollett’s, and everything got weirder from there. Rex Huppke, chicagotribune.com, 10 Dec. 2021 That is a question for the next president of baseball operations to solve, and the Mets cannot afford to bungle another job search. New York Times, 1 Oct. 2021 Other members of the board wanted to make sure the state didn’t bungle the reopening. Kiera Feldman, Los Angeles Times, 20 May 2021 Don’t mess around and bungle the best quarterback situation the Seahawks franchise has ever seen. Mike Jones, USA TODAY, 26 Feb. 2021 The on-field product was a disaster, only in part because of a season-ending injury to quarterback Dak Prescott, and the new coach found something new to bungle almost every week. Mike Finger, ExpressNews.com, 5 Jan. 2021 See More Word History
Etymology
perhaps of Scandinavian origin; akin to Icelandic banga to hammer
First Known Use
1530, in the meaning defined at transitive sense
Kids Definition
bungle
verb
bun·gle ˈbəŋ-gəl
bungled; bungling
: to act, do, make, or work badly
bungled the job
bungler
noun
as in blunderer
someone who bungles an effort a hopeless bungler at fixing things around the house Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
- blunderer
- butcher
- fumbler
- incompetent
- bumbler
- blunderbuss
- botcher
- screwup
- muddler
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- virtuoso
- master
- maestro
- expert
- adept
- ace
- wizard
- crackerjack
- crackajack