1
as in to stumble
to proceed or act clumsily or ineffectually
unprepared choristers who floundered helplessly through the musical number
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to shuffle
to move heavily or clumsily
the car floundered through the heavy wet snow, constantly getting stuck
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of flounder
So there was a period there from about 1970 to ’79 where the studio executives were floundering.
—
Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 13 Dec. 2024
Hire too early, and the journalist may flounder without the necessary infrastructure to support their work.
—Rhea Wessel, Forbes, 8 Dec. 2024
See All Example Sentences for flounder
Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 13 Dec. 2024
Hire too early, and the journalist may flounder without the necessary infrastructure to support their work.
—Rhea Wessel, Forbes, 8 Dec. 2024
See All Example Sentences for flounder
Recent Examples of Synonyms for flounder
Verb
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Skype won attention in the 2000s for giving people a way to talk without paying the phone company, but stumbled in the mobile era and didn’t enjoy a major resurgence during the pandemic.—
Jordan Novet,
CNBC,
28 Feb. 2025
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However, the Indian stock market has stumbled recently, with the BSE 500 shedding 19% from its recent peak last September—this after climbing 14.8% in 2024 and 25.1% in 2023.—
Garth Friesen,
Forbes,
28 Feb. 2025
Verb
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The plan involved shuffling around existing crew assignments to free up two of the four seats on a SpaceX capsule that launched in late September, so that Wilmore and Williams could occupy the seats on the return trip.—
Denise Chow,
NBC News,
20 Feb. 2025
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For all of the conversation late last year analyzing how quickly Sporting KC might be able to shuffle the chairs — or even Vermes praising the way his team played Wednesday — a swap at striker, a swap in the mentality at striker, transcends everything else.—
Sam McDowell,
Kansas City Star,
20 Feb. 2025
Verb
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Oscar-winning actor Gene Hackman,wife Betsy Arakawa, found dead in their home Gene Hackman's health struggles: What is angina?—
Taijuan Moorman,
USA TODAY,
28 Feb. 2025
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The Huskies got out to a lethargic start and struggled for more than four minutes to get a shot to fall.—
Emily Adams,
Hartford Courant,
28 Feb. 2025
Verb
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Warren’s deep, husky voice frees himself from the blame of an unhealthy relationship over a stomping piano beat.—
Rania Aniftos,
Billboard,
21 Jan. 2025
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Boston stomped the competition last season en route to winning their record 18th NBA championship.—
Daniel R. Depetris,
Newsweek,
1 Feb. 2025
Verb
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Don’t wait for late-arriving Easter to fire the starting gun for spring: April 1 is a good excuse to slough off the doldrums of winter and start exploring again.—
Mark Ellwood,
AFAR Media,
7 Feb. 2025
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And last but not least, the Clarify collection — which has Clarifying Shampoo, Scalp Serum and Scalp Scrub — is all about showing love to your scalp and sloughing off the day.—
Hedy Phillips,
People.com,
25 Jan. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Flounder.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/flounder. Accessed 3 Mar. 2025.
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