fouled-up

[ fould-uhp ]

adjective

1. Informal. confused, chaotic, or disorganized.

Word History and Origins

Origin of fouled-up¹

First recorded in 1945–50

Example Sentences

“One of those old-type natural fouled-up guys,” is how he sees Jake seeing him.

From New York Times

Military Academy and other military academies and war colleges are closely studying the unbelievably fouled-up Russian invasion of Ukraine and incorporating their findings regarding these blunders in their studies on military tactics.

From Washington Post

The last time that the Red Sox and the Yankees met for an October playoff series, in 2004, the Red Sox were a tortured outfit, the fouled-up team that not only hadn’t won a World Series since 1918 but that lost in such tragic yet inventive ways that it seemed like they were putting on a Chekhov play staged in baseball costume.

From The New Yorker

He was, to quote Philip Larkin’s summary of an imaginary biographer’s assessment of him, “one of those old-type natural fouled-up guys,” and one who could find endless and various beauty in a messed-up world.

From New York Times

So...dump around ten million people back on fouled-up countries that have massive economic and jobs problems.

From New York Times

Related Words

• baffled
• befuddled
• bewildered
• dazed
• disorganized
• distracted
• muddled
• perplexed
• perturbed
• puzzled