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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In the 88th minute, Neuer fumbled a routine shot and allowed Joselu to equalise.—
Sebastian Stafford-Bloor,
New York Times,
8 Apr. 2026
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Fans were exiting en masse in the top of the ninth when Frelick’s RBI single off Rule 5 rookie Ryan Watson, fumbled by reigning AL Gold Glove centerfielder Ceddanne Rafaela, increased Milwaukee’s lead to three.—
Gabrielle Starr,
Boston Herald,
7 Apr. 2026
Verb
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But as Adebayo stumbled to regain his balance, Ball reached out and pulled on Adebayo’s leg.—
Ira Winderman,
Sun Sentinel,
15 Apr. 2026
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Adebayo stumbled but did not fall.—
Steve Reed,
Chicago Tribune,
15 Apr. 2026
Verb
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The 31-year-old target man scored a late winner against Mbappe’s Madrid to hoist Mallorca out of the bottom three a fortnight ago, and was mobbed by his team-mates as the final whistle blew.—
Thom Harris,
New York Times,
21 Apr. 2026
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When the full-time whistle blew at the Etihad Stadium in northern England on Sunday, the live broadcast quickly focused on a close-up of Manchester City striker Erling Haaland.—
Ben Church,
CNN Money,
20 Apr. 2026
Verb
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There’s Championship action on Monday, when Middlesbrough travel to Sheffield United knowing a win will lift them to the top of the table, after Coventry City slipped up again on Saturday.—
Stuart James,
New York Times,
9 Feb. 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 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
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That might be kind of screwed up.—
Patrick Saunders,
Denver Post,
21 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Adebayo took his hard fall when tripped by the hand of Ball while saving the ball from going out of bounds beneath the Heat basket with the Heat down 28-26.—
Ira Winderman,
Sun Sentinel,
15 Apr. 2026
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Ball tripped Adebayo, with Ball swiping and making contact with Adebayo’s lower leg.—
Anthony Chiang,
Miami Herald,
15 Apr. 2026
Verb
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The family of the cabaret artist Fritz Grünbaum, who was murdered in the Holocaust, for example, was able to recover works by Viennese Expressionist artist Egon Schiele that were in Grünbaum’s vast personal collection in 2018 after decades of efforts.—
Jackie Hajdenberg,
Sun Sentinel,
20 Apr. 2026
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During production, Fosse insisted that Roberts spend the night in the actual apartment where Dorothy Stratten, the real-life Playboy Playmate of the Year from 1980, was murdered by her husband and manager, Paul Snider, the role Roberts was playing.—
Seth Abramovitch,
HollywoodReporter,
20 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Fouled up.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/fouled%20up. Accessed 21 Apr. 2026.
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