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Glite Dictionary
to feel one's way

to feel one's way

6.9
To move slowly and carefully, using touch or trying things step by step
  • phrasal verb
translation icon : ir a tientas
  • As the team navigated the unfamiliar territory, they had to feel their way through the dense fog.

Examples

Synonyms

to find one's way
vsto feel one's way
3.6

To reach a place or learn how to keep going after difficulty

is about careful gradual exploration rather than arriving at a result
to make one's way
vsto feel one's way
3.4

To move forward through a place despite problems

is about cautious gradual exploration rather than forcing progress through effort

Antonyms

impulsive
78 4.4

Acting suddenly without careful thought because of a strong feeling

to rush in
36 3.1

Act quickly without thinking, for example by going into a place

How Careful

to feel one's way
6.9
to try out
229 2.8
to move ahead
61 2.7

Surface Forms

feel one's way infinitive
felt one's way past
felt one's way past participle
feeling one's way present participle
feels one's way third person singular

Morphology

feel + one + way

The sense 'to proceed carefully or gradually by exploring or testing step by step' is directly built from 'feel' (to probe by touch) plus 'one's way' (one's path/manner), i.e. literally feeling the path forward. This compositional interpretation is common cross-linguistically and should be derivable by a B1 learner who knows the constituent words.

Etymology

The phrasal verb feel one's way comes from the image of a person moving in the dark and using their hands to feel the ground and find the way forward. That's why it means 'to go slowly and carefully when you are not sure what to do'.