BUGGER (UP) Synonyms: 61 Similar and Opposite Words

bugger (up)

verb

ˈbə-gər

Definition of bugger (up)

as in to fumble

to make or do (something) in a clumsy or unskillful way I've somehow buggered up the program again

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Recent Examples of Synonyms for bugger (up)

Verb

On the first play of Rutgers' next drive, Surace was sacked at the Rutgers 8 and fumbled with Northwestern’s Jamaal Johnson recovering.

— ABC News, ABC News, 24 Oct. 2026
The Chiefs actually missed a 43-yard field goal that would have won the game in regulation — after Justin Houston forced Lamar Jackson to fumble — but won the game with a short kick in overtime.

— Sam McDowell, Kansas City Star, 23 Oct. 2026

Definition of fumble

Verb

These higher-than-usual high tides are supercharged by winds blowing onshore, pushing more seawater on land.

— Alex Harris, Miami Herald, 27 Oct. 2026
While Healey is expected to let a reduction in his fiscal buffer do most of the work on the basis that the Iran war has blown a hole in his accounts, tax increases are still likely.

— Ian King, CNBC, 27 Oct. 2026

Definition of blow

Verb

Then police closed that, too — at midafternoon Tuesday after a report of a suspicious package — fouling up traffic for New Yorkers even more.

— ABC News, ABC News, 23 Sep. 2026
In the end, though, neither an explosion nor a giant spill of fluid that could foul up waterways and the ocean occurred.

— Hannah Fry, Los Angeles Times, 27 May 2026

Definition of foul up

Verb

Burdick seemed to have drawn directly from McCarthy’s experience, the hopelessness of fighting with his father over a world his father had already ruined, the surrender to indulgence and mindless violence because…why not?

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 20 Oct. 2026
Each room is also outfitted with a Yale smart lock, which means there’s no room for that horrible feeling of losing a room key to ruin your vacation.

— Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 20 Oct. 2026

Definition of ruin

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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buggers (up)

bugger (up)

buggies

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“Bugger (up).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bugger%20%28up%29. Accessed 27 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of bugger (up)

verb

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