floundered

VERB

struggle; be in the dark

Synonyms

STRONGEST

flop stumble wallow

STRONG

blunder bobble flummox fumble grope labor lurch muddle plunge pratfall snafu strive thrash toil toss travail tumble

WEAK

cast about come apart at the seams drop the ball fall down foul up go at backwards go to pieces make a mess of miss one's cue screw up slip up stub one's toe trip up work at

Antonyms

STRONG

idle laze

WEAK

do well succeed

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

floundered

He floundered as the Wolverines barely beat Western Michigan, the underdog, in the season opener, then looked stronger in a win Saturday against No. 11 Oklahoma.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 18, 2026

Attempts at diplomacy have floundered as fighting escalates on several fronts across Africa's third-largest country.

From Barron's ● Sep. 11, 2026

While Russell has floundered a little, less comfortable with the car, and is still afflicted by bad luck, pace seems to flow from Antonelli so easily.

From BBC ● Jul. 29, 2026

The Bucks floundered without him and the coach paid the price.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 13, 2026

Often they floundered, stepping or falling hands-first into waters as noisome as a cesspool, till they were slimed and fouled almost up to their necks and stank in one another’s nostrils.

From "The Two Towers" by J. R. R. Tolkien