as in to fumble
to make or do (something) in a clumsy or unskillful way
you've mangled this so badly that we'll have to do it over
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of mangle
Fatal crashes with pedestrians ‘mangle their bodies’ In 2023, over 1,300 people died in California in crashes that were determined to involve speeds over the speed limit or speeds that were unsafe for the current conditions.
—
Ariane Lange, Sacbee.com, 14 Aug. 2025
Mistakes embraced, names mangled mid-debate, Yet every jest recalled, however late.
—David Hochman, Forbes.com, 11 Aug. 2025
Seventeen wooden joists in the south-west corner’s terracing collapsed, sending those standing in the affected area through the floor, with some mangled in the steel and others plunging all the way to the ground.
—Jordan Campbell, New York Times, 17 May 2025
The Ed Gein Story jumps around in time, in part to make connections to the other adaptations and in part because the biographical chronology is so mangled that any distraction is welcome.
—Daniel Fienberg, HollywoodReporter, 3 Sep. 2019
See All Example Sentences for mangle
Ariane Lange, Sacbee.com, 14 Aug. 2025
Mistakes embraced, names mangled mid-debate, Yet every jest recalled, however late.
—David Hochman, Forbes.com, 11 Aug. 2025
Seventeen wooden joists in the south-west corner’s terracing collapsed, sending those standing in the affected area through the floor, with some mangled in the steel and others plunging all the way to the ground.
—Jordan Campbell, New York Times, 17 May 2025
The Ed Gein Story jumps around in time, in part to make connections to the other adaptations and in part because the biographical chronology is so mangled that any distraction is welcome.
—Daniel Fienberg, HollywoodReporter, 3 Sep. 2019
See All Example Sentences for mangle
Recent Examples of Synonyms for mangle
Verb
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He was sacked seven times and fumbled twice with both loose balls being recovered by the Bills’ defense.—
Mike Kaye,
Charlotte Observer,
27 Oct. 2025
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But that same quarter, Kansas fumbled on a punt that K-State turned into a touchdown.—
Shreyas Laddha,
Kansas City Star,
26 Oct. 2025
Verb
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The Giants, meanwhile, are coming off a painful defeat to the Denver Broncos, after blowing a 19-0 lead and losing 33-32 on a last-second Denver field goal after missing two PATs of their own, including one with 37 seconds left.—
Mike Jones,
New York Times,
26 Oct. 2025
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After the final whistle blew at Memorial Stadium, Kiffin made some headlines for his postgame behavior toward an Oklahoma player.—
Matt Audilet,
MSNBC Newsweek,
26 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Jones was named in an unsealed indictment Thursday as part of a widespread gambling investigation that federal officials have dubbed Operation Nothing But Bet.—
Doha Madani,
NBC news,
23 Oct. 2025
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However, in March photos emerged of a series of new barge-like PLA ships dubbed Shuiqiao that can link together to form a loading dock from over a half-mile out to sea—drastically boosting Beijing’s land invasion potency.—
Charlie Campbell,
Time,
23 Oct. 2025
Verb
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However, for some, gambling is an addiction that can ruin lives and families.—
Daniella Segura,
Miami Herald,
28 Oct. 2025
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The Chiefs have seen some of league’s premier running backs — such as Saquon Barkley, Derrick Henry and Jahmyr Gibbs — and have met each challenge, preventing those elite players from ruining the defensive game plan.—
Emily Curiel,
Kansas City Star,
26 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Meanwhile, the show has hosted plenty of controversial musical performances, such as NBC removing upside-down American flags from Rage Against the Machine’s amps in 1996 to Ashlee Simpson’s botched vocal performance in 2004.—
William Earl,
Variety,
19 Oct. 2025
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Made all the worse, that final play by Miami was botched by a mistake that led to the pickoff.—
Miami Herald,
Miami Herald,
18 Oct. 2025
Verb
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At the time that the cut was identified, researchers proposed that the mark proved that First Peoples butchered ancient megafauna.—
Mindy Weisberger,
CNN Money,
27 Oct. 2025
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This can include field dressing, skinning, butchering into various cuts and packaging.—
Gabrielle Chenault,
Nashville Tennessean,
23 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Gentleman thief Sir Charles Lytton (David Niven) circles the prize while Inspector Jacques Clouseau (Peter Sellers) bungles the pursuit with sublime obliviousness.—
Lilah Ramzi,
Vogue,
25 Oct. 2025
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The misfiring of Smashing Machine comes in the wake of A24 bungling the opening of horror-comedy, Death of a Unicorn, back in the spring, which after a receptive world premiere at SXSW with Wednesday megastar, Jenna Ortega, tanked with a $5.7M opening and final $12.8M domestic.—
Anthony D'Alessandro,
Deadline,
6 Oct. 2025
Verb
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The Japanese battleship Musashi, one of the largest ever built, was destroyed.—
Arizona Republic,
AZCentral.com,
26 Oct. 2025
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Russian air defense systems destroyed one drone heading for Moscow, the city’s mayor Sergei Sobyanin said on Sunday, according to Reuters.—
Laura Sharman,
CNN Money,
26 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Mangle.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/mangle. Accessed 31 Oct. 2025.
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