gropingly
Searching without sight
Gropingly describes doing something in a hesitant, uncertain way, as if feeling around in the dark: She gropingly searched for the light switch.
The word extends to mental fumbling—reaching tentatively toward understanding: He gropingly tried to articulate what he meant.
Literary and uncommon.
Attempting to find
- huntingPursuing wild game
- probingThoroughly investigating something
- rummagingSearching by moving things
- exploringTraveling to learn firsthand
questing · fishing · scrabbling · scrabbling · sweeping · sifting · investigating · locating
Without seeing or considering
- sightlesslyWithout the ability to see
- unseeingLacking visual perception
- darknessTotal absence of light
- obscurityState of being unknown
blackout · nighttime · unlit · shadowy · murky · pitch-black · lightless · dimness
seeking
Attempting to find
- huntingPursuing wild game
- probingThoroughly investigating something
- rummagingSearching by moving things
exploring · questing · fishing · scrabbling · scrabbling · sweeping · sifting · investigating · locating · finding
blindly
Without seeing or considering
- sightlesslyWithout the ability to see
- unseeingLacking visual perception
- darknessTotal absence of light
obscurity · blackout · nighttime · unlit · shadowy · murky · pitch-black · lightless · dimness · fumbling
fumbling
Clumsy, uncoordinated handling
pawing · reaching · fingering · handling · clasping · grasping · gripping · clutching · probing · prodding
hesitant
Slow to act
- tentativeUncertain and provisional
- unsureLacking confidence or certainty
- falteringBecoming unsteady or weak
haltingly · stumbling · unsteady · wavering · cautiously · carefully · warily · guardedly · timidly · nervously
gropinglyconfidently
With self-assurance
surely · assuredly · decisively · unhesitatingly · certainly
gropinglyprecisely
In an exact manner
deftly · unerringly · directly · accurately · expertly