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.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of foul-up
Lance Eliot, Forbes, 7 Sep. 2024
Many have faulted Cuba’s Stalinist bureaucratic centralization, but few critiques are as replete with concrete examples of foolishness and foul-ups.
—Richard Feinberg, Foreign Affairs, 1 Jan. 2012
Joe Rexrode, The Athletic, 24 Feb. 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
Many have faulted Cuba’s Stalinist bureaucratic centralization, but few critiques are as replete with concrete examples of foolishness and foul-ups.
—Richard Feinberg, Foreign Affairs, 1 Jan. 2012
Verb
This brings back the Bilas comment from long ago on fouling up two.
—Joe Rexrode, The Athletic, 24 Feb. 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
-
What’s the most common mistake people make when trying to recreate the Honey Deuce at home?—
Emily Cappiello,
Forbes.com,
15 Aug. 2025
-
My experience has been that my mistakes led to the best things in my life.—
Lea Veloso,
StyleCaster,
14 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
Jaylen Wright fumbled on a hit from safety John Saunders Jr.... Grayson Murphy sacked Wilson, who nevertheless threw the ball to Nick Westbrook-Ikhine for a 30 yard TD pass...—
Barry Jackson,
Miami Herald,
2 Aug. 2025
-
Playing their third road game in five days, the expansion team nearly fumbled a 17-point, first-half lead but got enough stops down the stretch to escape with a 68-67 win over the Washington Mystics on Thursday.—
Nathan Canilao,
Mercury News,
1 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
Kids weren’t tripping over themselves to sit and reach in their free time.—
Zach Helfand,
New Yorker,
12 Aug. 2025
-
The report, which was obtained by The Arizona Republic, part of the USA TODAY Network, said police concluded that Trigg accidentally fell into the pool after tripping and falling on an inflatable chair.—
Melina Khan,
USA Today,
11 Aug. 2025
Noun
-
Director Nisha Ganatra jollies it along, with editor Eleanor Infante making as much rhythmic sense of the mix-ups and physical craziness as possible.—
Michael Phillips,
Chicago Tribune,
6 Aug. 2025
-
The mix-up happened after a shared packaging supplier erroneously shipped empty Celsius cans to High Noon, the company said.—
Melina Khan,
USA Today,
31 July 2025
Verb
-
The foghorn blew every 30 seconds and pelicans sailed above, doing a quick half corkscrew turn before diving.—
Michael Goldstein,
Forbes.com,
16 Aug. 2025
-
United’s prospective new owner, Michael Knighton, was on the pitch beforehand, ball-juggling and blowing kisses to the crowd, and Neil Webb smashed one in from 25 yards on his debut — wild stuff, honestly (yeah, get on with it, Grandad).—
Oliver Kay,
New York Times,
15 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
Indeed, the Braves overcame an early 5-1 deficit in the series opener Tuesday with four runs in the fourth inning to tie the score, only to give it right back on a night when Spencer Strider stumbled, tying a career high with eight runs allowed in four innings.—
David O'Brien,
New York Times,
15 Aug. 2025
-
The Wave have been fortunate that Orlando and Washington have also stumbled, keeping the gap small.—
Fernando Ramirez,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
15 Aug. 2025
Noun
-
Role Clarity If current employees aren’t sure who owns what, new hires will step straight into the confusion.—
Leyda Lazo,
Forbes.com,
7 Aug. 2025
-
There is no confusion when a woman makes a decision regarding her relationship.—
Brian Moylan,
Vulture,
6 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
Episode 4 flips the script on the trope of a friend screwing up by mouthing off to the wrong person at the worst time.—
Ben Travers,
IndieWire,
6 Aug. 2025
-
That’s obviously the most ambitious goal on the table for us, because that whole system is clearly screwed up almost beyond repair unless somebody else comes in and upends it all.—
Frank DiGiacomo,
Billboard,
21 July 2025
Cite this Entry
“Foul-up.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/foul-up. Accessed 20 Aug. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share