screwed up

verb

past tense of screw up
1
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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2
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 But four years ago, Sorsby screwed up in a massive way. — Trey Wallace Outkick, FOXNews.com, 2 June 2026 The two screwed up a top-rope stunner as Excalibur struggled to explain what happened like a 2026 Jim Ross. — Alfred Konuwa, Forbes.com, 24 May 2026 The Sens are going to lose their pick for nothing at all, because of how a GM their fans didn’t like screwed up a trade his team wasn’t even involved in. — Sean McIndoe, New York Times, 11 Mar. 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 The climate may get screwed up in new ways as scientists attempt to turn the planet’s temperature dial down. — Christian Elliott, The Atlantic, 31 Jan. 2026 What Mager is showing here is the difference between kids and adults, the openness and willingness to be bold and confront things head on with matter-of-fact honesty in a world that is being screwed up by their elders and those in charge. — Pete Hammond, Deadline, 26 Jan. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for screwed up
  1. fumbled
  2. blew
  3. stumbled
  4. ruined
  5. slipped up
  6. fouled up
  7. tripped
  8. mucked up
Verb
  • The Giants scored the game’s first run in the top of the third when Mariners center fielder Luke Raley fumbled the ball on Bryce Eldridge’s single with runners on first and second.
    — Justice delos Santos, Mercury News, 19 July 2026
  • Basabe, 48, fumbled his way through the trial, often seeming confused about the legal proceedings.
    — Aaron Leibowitz, Miami Herald, 15 July 2026
Definition of fumbled
Verb
  • Things were never the same for Mike McCarthy after Green Bay blew a 16-0 halftime lead and a 19-7 advantage in the final 3 minutes against Seattle and lost the 2014 NFC Championship Game, 28-22, in overtime.
    — Rob Reischel, Forbes.com, 26 July 2026
  • That announcement nearly blew the roof off of Hall H, but nothing matched that intensity this year.
    — Jordan Moreau, Variety, 26 July 2026
Definition of blew
Verb
  • Fresh from lifting the FIFA Club World Cup and buoyed by optimism around Enzo Maresca’s project, the Blues stumbled to a disappointing 10th-place Premier League finish.
    — Graham Ruthven, New York Times, 31 July 2026
  • The Curiosity rover stumbled on the polygon field while ascending the foothills of a three-mile-high mountain called Mount Sharp, where it’s been roaming since 2014.
    — Frank Landymore, Futurism, 30 July 2026
Definition of stumbled
Verb
  • Designed for maximum comfort, Pedi Couture’s toe separator sandals are practical and time-saving, ensuring pedicures don't get ruined.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 25 July 2026
  • These folks had theirs ruined by the next shift of roaches, the five who died and the nine spotting living their lives.
    — David J. Neal July 24, Miami Herald, 24 July 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
  • Brooks, who is recovering from back-to-back ACL injuries, took a kick return rep midway through practice and seemingly tripped with his momentum taking him head-first into rookie linebacker Jackson Kuwatch’s ankles.
    — Charlotte Observer, Charlotte Observer, 29 July 2026
  • The footage alone cannot tell us whether the robot tripped or lost balance.
    — Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 29 July 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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Cite this Entry

“Screwed up.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/screwed%20up. Accessed 1 Aug. 2026.

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Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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