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screwup 1 of 2

noun

ˈskrü-ˌəp How to pronounce screwup (audio)
Definition of screwupnext
1
as in mistake
an unintentional departure from truth or accuracy clearly, there's been some sort of screwup about what time we were supposed to meet

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in butcher
someone who bungles an effort don't ask the office screwup to arrange the holiday party

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

screw up

2 of 2

verb

1
as in to fumble
to make a mistake we all screw up from time to time, so don't sweat it

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2
as in to blow
to make or do (something) in a clumsy or unskillful way you've totally screwed up the spreadsheet

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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 screwup
Noun
But the screwups don’t end there. — Eric Vilas-Boas, Vulture, 2 Dec. 2025 Vince is the screwup, a mostly-former drug and gambling addict, while Jake is a successful restaurateur, running the eponymous club/restaurant Black Rabbit in Manhattan. — Andrew Bernard, The Washington Examiner, 3 Oct. 2025
Verb
So not screwing up Spider-Man is about putting a beating heart at the center rather than a bunch of spectacle. — Chris Lee, Vulture, 3 Aug. 2026 The fear of failure can do as much harm as actually screwing up. — Amy Nicholson, Los Angeles Times, 30 July 2026 See All Example Sentences for screwup
Recent Examples of Synonyms for screwup
  1. mistake
  2. butcher
  3. fumble
  4. blow
  5. blunder
  6. incompetent
  7. stumble
  8. ruin
Noun
  • Well, his speed off the edge can cause a quarterback to make mistakes — the kind of game-changing mistakes from which the Chiefs did not benefit a year ago.
    — Sam McDowell, Kansas City Star, 7 Sep. 2026
  • In a work so dense with references, mistakes will sprout like crabgrass; write a big book on André Le Nôtre’s formal gardens and the earthworm experts will gather to deride your confusion.
    — Adam Gopnik, New Yorker, 7 Sep. 2026
Definition of mistake
Noun
  • The Burkes sell trees via their website, and sell fresh fruit at the farmers market and via a local specialty butcher, A & R Custom Butchering, Retail Meats and Deli in Red Bluff.
    — Sean Timberlake, Sacbee.com, 2 Sep. 2026
  • Most worked to serve the city's elites as guards, cleaners, tailors and butchers.
    — Diaa Hadid, NPR, 1 Sep. 2026
Definition of butcher
Verb
  • After Jordan fumbled away a screen pass, Maiava later found Mosley for that 68-yard score.
    — Ryan Kartje, Los Angeles Times, 5 Sep. 2026
  • Balogun didn’t hurt his stock or his public image by walking away from Everton, a club that fumbled its way through another transfer window.
    — Paul Tenorio, New York Times, 4 Sep. 2026
Definition of fumble
Verb
  • Scott Schaunaman, a Kansas City, Kansas, Fire Department spokesperson, said the contractor accidentally bored into a six-inch, high-pressure gas line from 150 feet away, blowing open a portion of 10th Street.
    — Ben Wheeler, Kansas City Star, 14 Sep. 2026
  • Fourteen of those storms originated in the East Pacific, which, with two and a half months of the season still to come, will likely blow past its average seasonal storm total of 15.
    — Mary Gilbert, CNN Money, 14 Sep. 2026
Definition of blow
Noun
  • There were mighty blunders off the field too under Jarmond, including an email that went out to donors that came with an attachment revealing personal information and spending tallies of the department’s biggest donors.
    — Mirjam Swanson, Los Angeles Times, 1 Sep. 2026
  • Common Mistakes When Cleaning Earbuds Take special care to avoid damaging your earbuds by avoiding these common blunders.
    — Emily Hayes, Martha Stewart, 31 Aug. 2026
Definition of blunder
Noun
  • The Dodgers reached the pinnacle honestly, in a capitalistic structure that properly hands no favors to the incompetent.
    — Bruce Jenkins, San Francisco Chronicle, 18 Jan. 2026
Definition of incompetent
Verb
  • But since then, Nosková has solidified while Sabalenka has stumbled, and the Czech has also gotten through some tough matches to reach this one.
    — Ava Wallace, New York Times, 8 Sep. 2026
  • Byron Nelson stumbles again Normally an area power, Trophy Club Byron Nelson is off to a rocky start.
    — Charles Baggarly, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 5 Sep. 2026
Definition of stumble
Verb
  • Only Hincapie’s wayward finish, a second later, ruined things.
    — Amy Lawrence, New York Times, 9 Sep. 2026
  • Social media now dominates millions of lives, ruining too many.
    — Orlando Sentinel, The Orlando Sentinel, 8 Sep. 2026
Definition of ruin

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Cite this Entry

“Screwup.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/screwup. Accessed 15 Sep. 2026.

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