grabble

You could ache for the cozy city of the past in “The Royal Tenenbaums” or grabble with the schism of everything suddenly feeling different in “Mulholland Drive.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 11, 2026

It’s that we want—and need—the ability to grabble with nuance and ambiguity that are inherent when our bodies and minds fail.

From Slate ● Apr. 9, 2018

V. touch, feel, handle, finger, thumb, paw, fumble, grope, grabble; twiddle, tweedle; pass the fingers over, run the fingers over; manipulate, wield; throw out a feeler.

From Roget's Thesaurus of English Words and Phrases by Peter Mark Roget

He jump up, he did, en 'gun ter grabble in de quog-mire des ez hard ez he kin.

From Nights With Uncle Remus by Milo Winter

Now, they, I admid, were fine, noble, sensible fellows; they had indelligence enough to regognize the diffiguldies of the siduation, and do grabble with them in a sensible way.

From The Log of the Flying Fish A Story of Aerial and Submarine Peril and Adventure by Gordon Browne

“Rebel Yell” starts up from the sound system and, as if on cue, my son lets out a grabbled “a-woooh!”

From Slate ● Jun. 30, 2015

Suddenly, the Fleshlumpeater shot out two enormous hands and grabbled the BFG around the waist.

From "The BFG" by Roald Dahl

Jim stopp'd an' grabbled up a clot, An' zent en at en lik' a shot; An' down went Daw an' cage avore The clot, up thump ageän the door.

From Poems of Rural Life in the Dorset Dialect by William Barnes

Being blind made touch even more of an instrument of knowing something although all grabbled around in darkness.

From Tokyo to Tijuana: Gabriele Departing America by Steven (Steven David Justin) Sills

He went ahead and run all aroun' de ginhouse and dey let him in de gin-room and he grabbled in de cottonseed in a hole.

From Slave Narratives: A Folk History of Slavery in the United States From Interviews with Former Slaves: Volume I, Alabama Narratives by United States. Work Projects Administration

Other departments in California are grabbling with similar incidents.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 22, 2020

‘We will swear to do what he wants, yes, yess,’ said Gollum, still twisting and grabbling at his ankle.

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

And then, as if a signal has gone off that only the childrens can hear, all of their hands are reaching and grabbling and snatching.

From "The Unfinished Angel" by Sharon Creech

The furies of rage and rancour were grabbling at her heart, even as the leopard had scrabbled on her face.

From Blue Aloes Stories of South Africa by Cynthia Stockley

I heard Collins grabbling for it, somewhere in the dark of the tunnel.

From The La Chance Mine Mystery by George W. Gage