mess-up

[ mes-uhp ]

noun

1. a blunder; state of confusion; mix-up.

Word History and Origins

Origin of mess-up¹

First recorded in 1900–05; noun use of verb phrase mess up

Example Sentences

Her supervisor and mentor, Professor Louis Leakey, though, saw the value in her technique: “He wanted somebody whose mind wasn't messed up by the reductionist attitude of science to animals,” Dr Goodall explains.

From BBC

“Everyone has messed up, from the local mayor to the regional president to the government in Madrid.”

From BBC

They respected each other because Bruno was in the military and became a criminal and George messed up in his youth and then he became a cop.

From Salon

“If you mess up a couple times, now your mind is away from the play,” he said of opponents, adding, “Now they’re focused on, ‘how am I going to get this guy back.’

From Los Angeles Times

She said she was not apologising because the SNP or Scottish government had "messed up", but because the £3bn project had faced significant challenges beyond their control, including from Brexit and the Covid pandemic.

From BBC