1
as in to stumble
to make a mistake
everything is riding on this project, so we can't afford to louse up
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
2
as in to fumble
to make or do (something) in a clumsy or unskillful way
I loused up the wallpapering job in the bedroom—the seams show too much
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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 louse up
Which is to say that America’s most prominent vaccine skeptic could have the power to upend, derail, or otherwise louse up a cornerstone of public health.
—
Daniel Engber, The Atlantic, 20 Nov. 2024
Conversely, one of the easiest ways to louse up a team on draft day is to load up a team with players who aren’t going to produce at a level commensurate with when they were drafted.
—Gary Davenport, The Athletic, 5 Aug. 2024
Daniel Engber, The Atlantic, 20 Nov. 2024
Conversely, one of the easiest ways to louse up a team on draft day is to load up a team with players who aren’t going to produce at a level commensurate with when they were drafted.
—Gary Davenport, The Athletic, 5 Aug. 2024
Recent Examples of Synonyms for louse up
Verb
-
Jaelin Kauff is easily through after her quarterfinal opponent Anastassiya Gordodko stumbles.—
Sean Nevin,
NBC news,
14 Feb. 2026
-
Gold-medal favorite figure skater Ilia Malinin stumbled to eighth in stunning fashion, citing the pressure of his first Olympics.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
14 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Do not fumble this opportunity to select a governor that is a true progressive candidate.—
Eleanor Dearman,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
14 Feb. 2026
-
In turn, the Heat fumbled it away.—
Ira Winderman,
Sun Sentinel,
10 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Square-jawed detectives were tripping over corpses at midtown construction sites, blind vigilantes were redecorating Hell’s Kitchen with body parts and even poor Lester the doorman ended up dead in an Upper West Side courtyard fountain.—
Benjamin Svetkey,
HollywoodReporter,
11 Feb. 2026
-
Finland had a power play opportunity after a tripping call against Slovakia's captain, Tomas Tatar.—
NBC News,
NBC news,
11 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Negotiators from the seven states along the Colorado River blew past yet another federal deadline over the weekend without reaching a compromise on how to share its water — even as this winter’s dismal snowpack could spell immediate disaster for the river system.—
Elise Schmelzer,
Denver Post,
17 Feb. 2026
-
Snow flurries are blowing at an angle, the sky is a leaden grey, and visibility is poor.—
Vivian Song,
CNN Money,
17 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Their actions spoke louder than words, even if Shanahan did slip up in the preseason and compare this team to his 2017 squad that didn’t win a game until mid-November.—
Dieter Kurtenbach,
Mercury News,
18 Jan. 2026
-
So, when Mario reconstructed the mess into a back-to-back bowl team, no one expected the athletic director to can him after a 3-9 slip up.—
Dana O’Neil,
CNN Money,
17 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
First of all, don’t hide misdeeds and screwups, which comes naturally by not committing misdeeds and not screwing up.—
Eleanor Dearman,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
14 Feb. 2026
-
Kid Rock‘s lip-synch was screwed up.—
Cheyenne Roundtree,
Rolling Stone,
10 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
That was what Ilia Malinin endured on Friday night, when his disastrous free skate ruined his chances for gold.—
Dave Skretta,
Chicago Tribune,
15 Feb. 2026
-
Steam cleaning is an effective way to sanitize and refresh your mattress, but the wrong technique can end up ruining the fabric.—
Madeline Buiano,
Martha Stewart,
15 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
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
-
The funding lapse led to delayed or suspended economic data, wreaked havoc at airports as flights were canceled due to air traffic controller shortages and fouled up the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.—
Fred Imbert,
CNBC,
13 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Louse up.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/louse%20up. Accessed 19 Feb. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
