fiasco

1 of 2

noun (1)

fi·​as·​co fē-ˈa-(ˌ)skō 

also

-ˈä- 

plural fiascoes

: a complete failure

The critic called the film a fiasco.

… the total fiasco that was his personal life …

—Margaret Atwood

fiasco

2 of 2

noun (2)

fi·​as·​co fē-ˈä-(ˌ)skō  -ˈa- 

plural fiascoes also fiaschi fē-ˈä-(ˌ)skē 

-ˈa-

: bottle, flask

especially : a bulbous long-necked straw-covered bottle for wine

Did you know?

English speakers picked up fiasco from the French, who in turn adopted it from the Italian phrase fare fiasco—literally, "to make a bottle." Just what prompted the development of the meaning "failure" from "bottle" has remained obscure. One guess is that when a Venetian glassblower would discover a flaw developing in a beautiful piece they were working on, they would turn it into an ordinary bottle to avoid having to destroy the object. The bottle would naturally represent a failure to the glassblower, whose would-be work of art was downgraded to everyday glassware. This theory, however, remains unsubstantiated.

Synonyms

Noun (1)

• disaster
• failure
• catastrophe

Examples of fiasco in a Sentence

Noun (1)

undaunted by his early fiascoes, he continued his experiments in rocketry

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Following that fiasco, Ansari began work on directing a new feature inspired by yet another sociological muse. —Hershal Pandya, Vulture, 7 Sep. 2025

Already hacked off by the renovation fiasco, the company’s longtime patrons pounced, accusing the corporation of betraying its history and values. —Graham Hillard, The Washington Examiner, 5 Sep. 2025

The Cracker Barrel fiasco is a classic that business schools will study for decades. —Jess Collen, Forbes.com, 30 Aug. 2025

But the oil field fiasco underscores the challenges China faces in achieving its goals. —Anthony Kuhn, NPR, 29 Aug. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Noun (1)

French, from Italian, from fare fiasco, literally, to make a bottle

Noun (2)

Italian, from Late Latin flasco bottle — more at flask

First Known Use

Noun (1)

circa 1854, in the meaning defined above

Noun (2)

1887, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for fiasco

• casco

Podcast

Get Word of the Day delivered to your inbox!

Kids Definition

fiasco

noun

fi·​as·​co

fē-ˈas-kō

plural fiascoes

: a complete failure