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screws up

VERB

make a mess of

Synonyms

STRONGEST

botch bungle confuse flub muddle spoil

WEAK

blow bobble bollix foul up goof goof up louse make hash of mess mess up mishandle mismanage muck up muff snafu

Antonyms

STRONGEST

clear up do well enlighten explain order organize succeed

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

And what happens when a columnist screws up like this?

From The Wall Street Journal • May 11, 2026

When Dave screws up, you get a performance improvement plan and Dave gets resentful.

From MarketWatch • Nov. 14, 2025

"It's the classic 'money screws up relationships' sort of situation," Ms Whitenack said.

From BBC • Sep. 24, 2024

Traditionally, when a media outlet makes a false claim or screws up a story, the redemption process includes a show of transparency about what happened; an admission of error.

From Salon • Feb. 22, 2023

It screws up the laws of physics for her to occupy the same room as the first wife.

From "Wintergirls" by Laurie Halse Anderson