scrabble
verbverb [intransitive] scrabble (around) (for something) + adv./prep.Verb Forms present simple I / you / we / they scrabble he / she / it scrabbles past simple scrabbled -ing form scrabbling
jump to other results to try to find or to do something in a hurry or with difficulty, often by moving your hands or feet around quickly, without much control She scrabbled around in her bag for her glasses. He was scrabbling for a foothold on the steep slope. a sound like rats scrabbling on the other side of the wall In his panic, he began scrabbling at the lock. The kids scrabbled up the slope.
See scrabble in the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary