as in mistake
an instance of confusion
there was a foul-up with our mail order, and not one item arrived as ordered
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
1
as in to fumble
to make or do (something) in a clumsy or unskillful way
tried not to foul up the football play
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to trip
to make a mistake
unfortunately, I fouled up and in my e-mail gave everyone the wrong date for the meeting
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
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Recent Examples of foul-up
Lance Eliot, Forbes, 7 Sep. 2024
Rather, inflation had arisen from supply chain foul-ups caused by the Covid epidemic, an act of God rendered worse by comic-opera mismanagement under President Donald Trump.
—Timothy Noah, The New Republic, 30 June 2023
Alex Harris
july 3, Miami Herald, 3 July 2025
But Paige has been there, injuries fouling up her career, too.
—John Nogowski, Hartford Courant, 25 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for foul-up
Noun
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
Rather, inflation had arisen from supply chain foul-ups caused by the Covid epidemic, an act of God rendered worse by comic-opera mismanagement under President Donald Trump.
—Timothy Noah, The New Republic, 30 June 2023
Verb
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
But Paige has been there, injuries fouling up her career, too.
—John Nogowski, Hartford Courant, 25 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for foul-up
Recent Examples of Synonyms for foul-up
Noun
-
And Apple has no plans to release Veritas as a standalone consumer app, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, who calls this a mistake, and is calling for Apple to release the AI chatbot as a standalone app.—
Alexei Oreskovic,
Fortune,
29 Sep. 2025
-
But even his mistakes were committed in his desire to protect the integrity of the institution he’d been appointed to lead.—
Billy Ray,
Deadline,
29 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Last year, Colts star running back Jonathan Taylor celebrated prematurely and fumbled the ball through the back of the end zone on what was going to be a 41-yard TD run.—
James Boyd,
New York Times,
29 Sep. 2025
-
Cowboys linebacker James Houston caused Love to fumble.—
Ryan Gaydos,
FOXNews.com,
29 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
December 21 - January 19) Losing steam around a course or trip?—
USA TODAY,
USA Today,
27 Sep. 2025
-
Farley, a former New York City health commissioner who teaches at Tulane University, acknowledged that many factors contribute to falls, including the physical impairments and deteriorating eyesight associated with advancing age; alcohol abuse; and tripping hazards in people’s homes.—
Paula Span,
Miami Herald,
25 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
This was a second mix-up, however, and Patel issued an update saying this person had been questioned and released.—
Sarah Rumpf-Whitten , Michael Ruiz,
FOXNews.com,
19 Sep. 2025
-
Bob's Olive Garden mix-up isn't the first time an American has shared a culture shock after going on vacation.—
Alice Gibbs,
MSNBC Newsweek,
18 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Kansas football blew a fourth-quarter lead and lost to Cincinnati on Saturday.—
Shreyas Laddha,
Kansas City Star,
28 Sep. 2025
-
After blowing a golden opportunity against the Buffalo Bills in Week 1, the Ravens blew out the Cleveland Browns but then coughed up another statement-win opportunity against the Detroit Lions last week.—
Mike Jones,
New York Times,
28 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
After a rocky start, Joey stumbles on some talents and goes to great lengths to impress Leonard in his audition for a play.—
Kevin Jacobsen,
Entertainment Weekly,
24 Sep. 2025
-
One of them had stumbled upon Sleep Token at a music festival a few years ago and had been hooked on the band’s teachings ever since, while the other had flown to New York from rural Texas just to be at the evening’s show.—
Mackenzie Cummings-Grady,
Billboard,
23 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
But this caused even more confusion.—
Mitch Moxley,
Rolling Stone,
27 Sep. 2025
-
But, investigators found there was too much confusion over the interpretation of the rule.—
David Goodhue,
Miami Herald,
27 Sep. 2025
Verb
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The steaks have all been beautifully marbled, which makes cooking them pretty hard to screw up.—
Alaina Chou,
Bon Appetit Magazine,
30 Sep. 2025
-
Having obvious trouble is Lesley, who put a layer of shortbread under her flapjack, which screwed up the cooking time, which screwed up the decorating time, which left Lesley, well, screwed.—
Brian Moylan,
Vulture,
26 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Foul-up.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/foul-up. Accessed 1 Oct. 2025.
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