flounder
UK[ˈflaʊndə]US[ˈflaʊndər]
v
to struggle or move with difficulty, especially in water, mud, or a deep soft substance
v
to have great difficulties and be likely to fail completely
n
a small flat fish that lives in the sea
Etymology
The verb 'flounder' likely originated in the late 16th century as an alteration of the verb 'founder', influenced by a blend with words like 'blunder' or the Dutch 'flodderen', meaning 'to flop about'. 'Founder' itself comes from Old French 'fondrer', meaning 'to send to the bottom', from Latin 'fundus' (bottom). The core idea of struggling, sinking, or moving clumsily connects these roots. The noun for the fish is entirely separate, entering Middle English from Anglo-Norman French 'floundre', which is of Scandinavian origin, related to Swedish 'flundra'. The accidental homophony of the two words in English is a coincidence of linguistic history.
Analysis
The word 'flounder' is a simplex word of uncertain, likely Scandinavian origin. It is not productively formed from separable morphemes in modern English.
Examples
The exhausted hiker floundered through the deep snow.
Without a clear plan, the new project began to flounder.
He caught a flounder while fishing off the pier.