1
: a state of confusion or an error caused by ineptitude, carelessness, or mismanagement
foul-ups in transportation
2
: a mechanical difficulty
fouled up; fouling up; fouls up
1
: to make dirty : contaminate
2
: to spoil by making mistakes or using poor judgment : confuse
: to cause a foul-up : bungle
it was his fault. He had fouled up—
Pat Frank
Pat FrankExamples of foul-up in a Sentence
Noun
there was a foul-up with our mail order, and not one item arrived as ordered
Verb
tried not to foul up the football play
unfortunately, I fouled up and in my e-mail gave everyone the wrong date for the meeting
Recent Examples on the Web
Bailey Berg, AFAR Media, 5 Mar. 2025
That foul-up then gets included in the series of questions and answers, causing the final answer to go askew.
—Lance Eliot, Forbes, 7 Sep. 2024
Todd Boss, Forbes.com, 15 Aug. 2025
Year-long court battles have been waged over exactly how clean the water in the Everglades has to be without fouling up the whole system.
—Alex Harris
july 3, Miami Herald, 3 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for foul-up
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Noun
There are fewer opportunities for foul-ups and mishandling between flights when there are fewer connections and layovers.
—Bailey Berg, AFAR Media, 5 Mar. 2025
That foul-up then gets included in the series of questions and answers, causing the final answer to go askew.
—Lance Eliot, Forbes, 7 Sep. 2024
Verb
Also, if Utah or Miami were to score an upset in the opening round, St. Louis would have first dibs at taking that team instead of Orlando, which would foul up these predictions completely.
—Todd Boss, Forbes.com, 15 Aug. 2025
Year-long court battles have been waged over exactly how clean the water in the Everglades has to be without fouling up the whole system.
—Alex Harris
july 3, Miami Herald, 3 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for foul-up
Cite this Entry
“Foul-up.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/foul-up. Accessed 30 Oct. 2025.
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