flounder

[floun-der] / ˈflaʊn dər /

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.

While corvids and parrots are unquestionably brainy, they flounder with some cognitive tasks.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 22, 2026

Or, with no party organisation behind him, he could flounder.

From Barron's • Mar. 6, 2026

I still rewatch Hasan doing what he does best, and I admire him—because in that chair I’d probably flounder and set our people back a decade.

From Slate • Jul. 29, 2025

He points to Kevin Costner's Horizon films, originally envisioned as a multi-part theatrical franchise, only to flounder once the first instalment tanked, as an example of the dangers.

From BBC • Apr. 5, 2025

He began to flounder wildly, as if he had waked to find himself in ten feet of water.

From "The Secret History" by Donna Tartt

Vocabulary lists containing flounder

List 2

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"The Most Dangerous Game" by Richard Connell

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