as in failing
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1
as in struggling
to proceed or act clumsily or ineffectually
unprepared choristers who floundered helplessly through the musical number
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in shuffling
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 floundering
Miami Herald, 8 Jan. 2026
After the crash, the driver can be seen floundering in the pool after being ejected from her vehicle.
—Emma Bussey, FOXNews.com, 31 Dec. 2025
In the meantime, Carolina botched an opportunity against Seattle to clinch the South on Sunday while Tampa Bay was busy floundering its way to a loss against Miami.
—Scott Fowler, Charlotte Observer, 29 Dec. 2025
The team has a Week 17 road clash with the Chargers before hosting the floundering Colts in Week 18.
—Patrick Sung, CNN Money, 23 Dec. 2025
Russian automotive, aviation, and semiconductor manufacturing capabilities are all floundering—just like the rest of the Russian economy.
—Jeffrey Sonnenfeld, Time, 16 Dec. 2025
When Disney took over 21st Century Fox in 2019, for example, the latter had been floundering for years, struggling to keep up with the industry’s shift toward franchises and existing properties.
—David Sims, The Atlantic, 10 Dec. 2025
Among those other candidates is interim head coach Terry Smith, who helped stabilize a floundering team that reached bowl eligibility and won its last three regular-season games.
—Nelson Espinal, MSNBC Newsweek, 5 Dec. 2025
Moving forward, games that are either cheap to make or deemed more likely to generate significant revenue windfalls may take priority over riskier bets, said the people, while Xbox’s floundering hardware division may face a significant rethinking.
—Bloomberg, Mercury News, 23 Oct. 2025
Verb
Stephen Ross, the Miami Dolphins’ majority owner since 2009, is now looking for his eighth different head coach in a parade of floundering, flailing and failing.
—Recent Examples of Synonyms for floundering
Verb
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However, the technology has been moving faster than state regulations can accommodate, and lawmakers have been struggling to walk the line between innovation and patient safety.—
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And, for many borrowers struggling with debt, exploring alternatives like debt settlement or consolidation may offer significant relief without the complications that bankruptcy rules can create.—
Verb
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Go on a street food tour Street food tours are great things to do in Sicily and a fabulous alternative to hours of shuffling through museums.—
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It's designed to offer a satisfying and calming shuffling motion, guided by a strong magnet and a seamless sliding track on the inside.—
Adjective
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Garden centers aren't giving a refund for a dying or dead plant but rather a discount on a new purchase.—
Verb
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The Packers are stumbling coming into the playoff with four straight losses, two of them via absolute giveaways.—
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Government agencies and businesses that invest in this training, and that insist every critical number survives a deterministic check, will capture AI's benefits without stumbling into its blind spots.—
Verb
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Then there’s the people watching, from the tailgating to the communal divot stomping, full of dramatic sun dresses and hats with flourishes, seersucker suits and, yes, hats with flourishes.—
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When episode 8 opens, Maia is stomping around NYC’s Chinatown, eager to find a pretext for breaking no-contact.—
Adjective
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While pruning, remove any winter damage, along with dead and declining growths, to allow new shoots to reform the plant.—
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In order to reopen, counties must demonstrate declining prevalence of COVID-19, testing ability of 30 tests per 10,000 residents per week, contact tracing and isolation facilities.—
Cite this Entry
“Floundering.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/floundering. Accessed 12 Jan. 2026.
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