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
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Recent Examples of fouled up
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
Joe Arruda, Hartford Courant, 15 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for fouled up
Verb
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When Kahn fumbled Rivaldo’s shot from the edge of the box, Ronaldo was on hand to convert the rebound.—
Michael Cox,
New York Times,
15 Feb. 2026
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In turn, the Heat fumbled it away.—
Ira Winderman,
Sun Sentinel,
10 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Illinois bolted an early 15-3 lead as USC stumbled out of the gate, turning the ball over four times in the first six minutes and missing seven of its first eight shots.—
Ryan Kartje,
Los Angeles Times,
19 Feb. 2026
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But in a market with no room for error, the cybersecurity giant stumbled on guidance, and the stock sank.—
Zev Fima,
CNBC,
18 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Duke blew a 15-point lead in the second half of that one and allowed the last nine points.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
11 Feb. 2026
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Simu Liu is attached in the lead role of Brad Katsuyama, who blew the whistle on high-tech corruption in the financial industry, with Anthony Bregman set to produce.—
Matt Grobar,
Deadline,
11 Feb. 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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Kid Rock‘s lip-synch was screwed up.—
Cheyenne Roundtree,
Rolling Stone,
10 Feb. 2026
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The climate may get screwed up in new ways as scientists attempt to turn the planet’s temperature dial down.—
Christian Elliott,
The Atlantic,
31 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Fighting Illini coach Brad Underwood asked officials to review whether Fears intentionally tripped David Mirkovic after stopping in front of him.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
8 Feb. 2026
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May was right that Fears tripped Lendeborg, a dirty play that should have resulted in a flagrant foul.—
Joe Rexrode,
New York Times,
3 Feb. 2026
Verb
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And Hila Abir, the sister of Lotan Abir, also murdered at the Nova festival, spoke at the Knesset hearing.—
Grace Gilson,
Sun Sentinel,
16 Feb. 2026
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Families were ripped apart, with most, including mothers with children and the elderly, sent straight to death in gas chambers that at their peak murdered 6,000 people a day.—
Lesley Stahl,
CBS News,
16 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Fouled up.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/fouled%20up. Accessed 20 Feb. 2026.
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