MUCKED UP Synonyms: 62 Similar and Opposite Words

mucked up

verb

past tense of muck up

as in fumbled

to make or do (something) in a clumsy or unskillful way I swear, she mucks up everything she tries

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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 mucked up An exciting World Cup run mucked up by a president for whom muck might as well be a currency. — Gustavo Arellano, Los Angeles Times, 8 July 2026 Even in the harshest descriptions of the violence and almost unbelievably cruel twists of fate that Yarris endured (the DNA testing keeps getting accidentally mucked up), Brody lends him a vital indomitable spark. — Jackson McHenry, Vulture, 16 Apr. 2026 Toronto is a good defensive team but doesn’t shoot the 3-ball well and has a half-court offense that can get mucked up and relies heavily on midrange jumpers. — James L. Edwards Iii, New York Times, 9 Mar. 2026 Well, the first and third mucked up their stories with some overly contrived lore about cults and gods, and the fourth was an experiment for the formula that didn’t quite work. — Alison Foreman, IndieWire, 23 Jan. 2026 Lawmakers need to get back to Washington to end the government shutdown - a shutdown that has mucked up travel plans around the country by contributing to widespread flight delays. — Zachary Schermele, USA Today, 11 Nov. 2025

Recent Examples of Synonyms for mucked up

Verb

Treadwell fumbled and L’Jarius Sneed recovered the ball for what initially was ruled a game-winning recovery.

— Pete Grathoff, Kansas City Star, 21 Sep. 2026
The Northwestern defense came up with another fourth-down stop to open the third quarter, but the Wildcats gave the ball back when Caleb Komolafe fumbled at the Colorado 34.

— Colleen Kane, Chicago Tribune, 20 Sep. 2026

Definition of fumbled

Verb

That doesn’t mean the Yankees screwed up in their process by trading for Stanton.

— Chris Kirschner, New York Times, 23 Aug. 2026
Every time a player screwed up, the coaching staff and his teammates received a text message, calling out both the infraction and the guilty party.

— Dana O’Neil, CNN Money, 14 Aug. 2026

Definition of screwed up

Verb

Georgia State wasn’t done, as running back Qwantavius Wiggins blew past the UCF defense, racing 78 yards for a touchdown and giving the Panthers their first lead of the game at 21-17.

— Matt Murschel, The Orlando Sentinel, 20 Sep. 2026
Smith, the shortest player in the FBS at 5-foot-5, fielded the ball at the 2 near the left sideline, faked a reverse handoff near the 10 before changing direction and blew past Cincinnati’s kick coverage team up the right sideline.

— ABC News, ABC News, 19 Sep. 2026

Definition of blew

Verb

In a defense memo, Pattis characterizes Diamantis as a broken and financially ruined former politician and lawyer who at 70 might not survive a long prison sentence.

— Edmund H. Mahony, Hartford Courant, 14 Sep. 2026
What could have easily ruined their experience instead became an unforgettable highlight of the trip.

— Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 11 Sep. 2026

Definition of ruined

Verb

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

Definition of fouled up

Verb

That was the fate of Jeffrey Dahmer’s former apartment building and the Idaho house where Bryan Kohberger murdered four college students.

— Graham Womack, Sacbee.com, 21 Sep. 2026
In 1892, Andrew Borden and his wife, Abby, were murdered in broad daylight inside their Massachusetts home, just blocks from the town’s busy center.

— Alex Gurley, PEOPLE, 19 Sep. 2026

Definition of murdered

Verb

This class of insects was dubbed lepidoptera, meaning scale wings, by Swedish botanist Carl Linnaeus in 1746.

— Heller McAlpin, Christian Science Monitor, 19 Sep. 2026
Congress this week attempted to rush the measure, dubbed the Ratepayer Protection Act, in the waning days before November’s election, as data centers have become an increasingly contentious issue.

— Justin Papp, CNBC, 17 Sep. 2026

Definition of dubbed

Browse Nearby Words

mucked (out)

mucked up

muckety-muck

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“Mucked up.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/mucked%20up. Accessed 23 Sep. 2026.

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Synonyms of mucked up

verb

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