mess up
phrasal verb
messed up; messing up; messes up
informal
: to make a mistake : to do something incorrectly
About halfway into the recipe, I realized that I had messed up, and I had to start over.
—often + onShe's afraid she'll mess up on the test.
I messed up on my first attempt.
Examples of mess up in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
The Hurricanes committed a dozen penalties, had five drops, committed two turnovers and messed up field position with a few bad special teams plays.
—
Jordan McPherson, Miami Herald, 7 Nov. 2025
They’re supposed to be about complicated, messed up people in a complicated, messed up world, but there should be a feeling of hope.
—Lexy Perez, HollywoodReporter, 4 Nov. 2025
One report, citing a source close to Sheridan, even claimed the writer was annoyed that Paramount sent too many of its top suits to a meeting designed to keep Sheridan onboard, arguing that Ellison had messed up by bringing more than two execs along with him.
—Josef Adalian, Vulture, 30 Oct. 2025
Pullover hoodies tend to come in a greater variety of designs since manufacturers don’t have to worry about a zipper running down the length to mess up how the graphics look.
—Bestreviews, Mercury News, 27 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for mess up
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Jordan McPherson, Miami Herald, 7 Nov. 2025
They’re supposed to be about complicated, messed up people in a complicated, messed up world, but there should be a feeling of hope.
—Lexy Perez, HollywoodReporter, 4 Nov. 2025
One report, citing a source close to Sheridan, even claimed the writer was annoyed that Paramount sent too many of its top suits to a meeting designed to keep Sheridan onboard, arguing that Ellison had messed up by bringing more than two execs along with him.
—Josef Adalian, Vulture, 30 Oct. 2025
Pullover hoodies tend to come in a greater variety of designs since manufacturers don’t have to worry about a zipper running down the length to mess up how the graphics look.
—Bestreviews, Mercury News, 27 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for mess up
Cite this Entry
“Mess up.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/mess%20up. Accessed 9 Nov. 2025.
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