SCREWED UP Synonyms: 82 Similar and Opposite Words

screwed up

verb

past tense of screw up

as in fumbled

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

Synonyms & Similar Words

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as in blew

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

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 screwed up 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 That growth is mostly a testament to how screwed up our school bus system currently is. — Maggie McGrath, Forbes.com, 12 Aug. 2026 That screwed up the works / And not due to his sloppy hiring / Of a crew of incompetent jerks. — Voice Of The People, New York Daily News, 6 Aug. 2026 But four years ago, Sorsby screwed up in a massive way. — Trey Wallace Outkick, FOXNews.com, 2 June 2026 That might be kind of screwed up. — Patrick Saunders, Denver Post, 21 Feb. 2026 That seems like our priorities are screwed up. — Terry Gross, NPR, 19 Feb. 2026 Kid Rock‘s lip-synch was screwed up. — Cheyenne Roundtree, Rolling Stone, 10 Feb. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for screwed up

Verb

On the fifth, Malik Washington fumbled after a 30-yard catch and run.

— Barry Jackson, Miami Herald, 14 Sep. 2026
For all of the anticipation of an explosive new offensive attack sparked by the arrival of new coordinator Mike McDaniel, the Chargers stumbled and fumbled their way through their season debut.

— Doug Haller, New York Times, 13 Sep. 2026

Definition of fumbled

Verb

From our first conversations, Jon blew us away with his intelligence and deep creative insights about how to craft great stories.

— Matt Grobar, Deadline, 14 Sep. 2026
The new Manchester City manager had already danced down the touchline to celebrate in front of the joyous away fans as soon as referee Michael Oliver blew the final whistle on a game that City had no right to win.

— Sam Lee, New York Times, 14 Sep. 2026

Definition of blew

Verb

Portage stumbled into its flock of Flocks after then-Sheriff Dave Reynolds contracted with the company to put them in the city.

— Doug Ross, Chicago Tribune, 15 Sep. 2026
For all of the anticipation of an explosive new offensive attack sparked by the arrival of new coordinator Mike McDaniel, the Chargers stumbled and fumbled their way through their season debut.

— Doug Haller, New York Times, 13 Sep. 2026

Definition of stumbled

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

The Iberians slipped up big time in their first match of the tournament, being shocked by Switzerland 1-0, bringing back ghosts of tournament failures past for Spanish fans.

— Patrick Sung Cuadrado, CNN Money, 14 July 2026
Had Pep Guardiola’s side slipped up at a subdued Etihad, then Arsenal and Mikel Arteta could have won the title with victory over Burnley on Monday.

— Sam Lee, New York Times, 13 May 2026

Definition of slipped up

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

An older man to my right tripped and took a face-first dive across the pavement, glasses flying off his face.

— Timothy Townsend, Rolling Stone, 11 Sep. 2026
Mizzou tripped Kansas 42-31 last season in Columbia, went 4-1 against the Jayhawks uninterrupted from 2007-11 at Arrowhead Stadium and also conquered KU 42-17 in 2006 at Memorial Stadium in Columbia.

— Gary Bedore, Kansas City Star, 11 Sep. 2026

Definition of tripped

Verb

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

Definition of mucked up

Browse Nearby Words

screwed around

screwed up

screwing

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Style

“Screwed up.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/screwed%20up. Accessed 19 Sep. 2026.

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Synonyms of screwed up

verb

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