1
as in fumbled
to make or do (something) in a clumsy or unskillful way
tried not to foul up the football play
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in stumbled
to make a mistake
unfortunately, I fouled up and in my e-mail gave everyone the wrong date for the meeting
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Recent Examples of fouled up
But their strategy was fouled up when the car’s occupants switched on the headlights, throwing a glare up the tote road along which the wardens had planned to sprint.
—
Dave Duffey, Outdoor Life, 26 Mar. 2026
Wild turkeys gobbled up Staten Island straphangers’ time on Monday, after a flock fouled up service on the Staten Island Railway.
—Evan Simko-Bednarski, New York Daily News, 17 Mar. 2026
Karaban almost had a costly turnover on an inbound play with 14 seconds left, but the Huskies fouled up three and Mulready split his free throw attempts, setting up the game-clinching freebies from the Huskies’ captain.
—Joe Arruda, Hartford Courant, 15 Feb. 2026
Dave Duffey, Outdoor Life, 26 Mar. 2026
Wild turkeys gobbled up Staten Island straphangers’ time on Monday, after a flock fouled up service on the Staten Island Railway.
—Evan Simko-Bednarski, New York Daily News, 17 Mar. 2026
Karaban almost had a costly turnover on an inbound play with 14 seconds left, but the Huskies fouled up three and Mulready split his free throw attempts, setting up the game-clinching freebies from the Huskies’ captain.
—Joe Arruda, Hartford Courant, 15 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for fouled up
Verb
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During Miami’s two periods of special teams work Malik Washington fumbled his first kickoff return, but most of the other punt returners and kickoff returned fielded their attempts well.—
Omar Kelly,
Miami Herald,
2 June 2026
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Given how badly Karen Bass has fumbled as mayor, Raman couldn’t do much worse.—
Sal Rodriguez,
Daily News,
28 May 2026
Verb
-
Soto, wounded, stumbled into the Wingstop seeking help.—
Rosalio Ahumada,
Sacbee.com,
3 June 2026
-
During the investigation, the team unexpectedly stumbled upon a cellular pathway that blocked the virus from entering lung cells, SWNS reported.—
Khloe Quill,
FOXNews.com,
3 June 2026
Verb
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The 2006 Royals had the worst bullpen ERA in baseball and blew 31 saves.—
Pete Grathoff,
Kansas City Star,
1 June 2026
-
The Boston Celtics blew a 3-1 lead to the 76ers in the first round and the Detroit Pistons lost to the Cavaliers in seven games in the second round.—
Lev Akabas,
Sportico.com,
1 June 2026
Verb
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Had Pep Guardiola’s side slipped up at a subdued Etihad, then Arsenal and Mikel Arteta could have won the title with victory over Burnley on Monday.—
Sam Lee,
New York Times,
13 May 2026
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And while Conrad was the one who slipped up at the peach orchard in Episode 5, Belly’s the one to blame in Seadon 3, Episode 6.—
Monica Mercuri,
Forbes.com,
13 Aug. 2025
Verb
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The two screwed up a top-rope stunner as Excalibur struggled to explain what happened like a 2026 Jim Ross.—
Alfred Konuwa,
Forbes.com,
24 May 2026
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The Sens are going to lose their pick for nothing at all, because of how a GM their fans didn’t like screwed up a trade his team wasn’t even involved in.—
Sean McIndoe,
New York Times,
11 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Drawing 0-0 at home with Brentford in March, the visitors should have conceded a penalty and been put down to 10 men when Tavernier was tripped in the area by Michael Kayode.—
Graham Scott,
New York Times,
2 June 2026
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In the summer of 1953, while playing with his brother in a trio at Conneaut Lake, Negri tripped over a pretty girl on the beach, Joni Serafini of Squirrel Hill.—
Tribune News Service,
Boston Herald,
1 June 2026
Verb
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As the media narrative went, a 27-year-old gay serial killer named Andrew Cunanan had murdered five wealthy gay paramours, the last of whom was the fashion designer Gianni Versace.—
Adam Turner,
Vanity Fair,
1 June 2026
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In his original tweet on May 31, 2020, Napear responded to a question from former Kings center DeMarcus Cousins, who asked Napear for his thoughts on the Black Lives Matter movement after George Floyd was murdered by Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin.—
Jason Anderson,
Sacbee.com,
31 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Fouled up.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/fouled%20up. Accessed 6 Jun. 2026.
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