| Main Entry: | |
| Part of Speech: | noun |
| Definition: | mistake |
| Synonyms: | blooper, blunder, bungle, confusion, error, false step, faux pas, flub, foul-up, goof-up, mess, miscalculation, misjudgment, misunderstanding, mix-up, oversight, screwup, slip, slipup |
| Main Entry: | can of worms |
| Part of Speech: | noun |
| Definition: | complicated situation |
| Synonyms: | Gordian knot, Pandora's box, Pandora's box, complex problem, complexity, complication, difficult situation, difficulty, dog's breakfast, entanglement, hard nut to crack, headache, hornet's nest, hot water, hot water, mare's nest, mess, predicament, problem, quagmire, quandary, snafu, snake pit, snarl, trouble, troublesome problem, unpredictable situation |
| Main Entry: | complicate |
| Part of Speech: | verb |
| Definition: | confuse, make difficult |
| Synonyms: | add fuel to fire, bedevil, clog, combine, confound, convolute, derange, disarrange, disorder, elaborate, embroil, entangle, fold, foul up, handicap, impede, infold, interfuse, interrelate, interweave, involve, jumble, make intricate, make waves, mix up, muck up, muddle, multiply, obscure, open can of worms, perplex, ravel, render unintelligible, screw up, snafu, snag, snarl up, tangle, twist, upset |
| Antonyms: | disentangle, ease, explain, facilitate, make simple, untangle |
| Main Entry: | confused |
| Part of Speech: | adjective |
| Definition: | mixed up, disordered |
| Synonyms: | anarchic, blurred, chaotic, disarranged, disorderly, disorganized, haywire, in a muddle, in disarray, involved, jumbled, messy, miscalculated, miscellaneous, mistaken, misunderstood, obscured, out of order, snafu, snarled, topsy-turvy, unsettled, untidy |
| Antonyms: | methodical, ordered, organized, separated, systematic |
| Main Entry: | cross |
| Part of Speech: | verb |
| Definition: | betray, hinder |
| Synonyms: | backtalk, block, bollix, buck, crab, cramp, crimp, deny, double-cross, flummox, foil, foul up, frustrate, have bone to pick, impede, interfere, knock props out, louse up, obstruct, oppose, resist, sell out, sell*, snafu, stab in the back, stonewall, stump, stymie, take on, take wind out of sails, thwart |
| Antonyms: | abet, aid, assist, help |
| Main Entry: | dismay |
| Part of Speech: | verb |
| Definition: | disappoint, fill with consternation |
| Synonyms: | abash, affright, agitate, alarm, appall, bewilder, bother, chill, confound, daunt, discomfit, discompose, disconcert, discourage, dishearten, disillusion, dispirit, disquiet, distress, disturb, dumbfound, embarrass, faze, flummox, fluster, foul up, frighten, get to, horrify, louse up, mess up*, muck up, mystify, nonplus, paralyze, perplex, put off, puzzle, rattle, scare, screw up, shake, snafu, take aback, terrify, terrorize, throw, throw into a tizzy, unhinge, unnerve, upset |
| Antonyms: | assure, encourage, make happy |
| Main Entry: | err |
| Part of Speech: | verb |
| Definition: | make a mistake; do wrong |
| Synonyms: | be in error, be inaccurate, be incorrect, be mistaken, blow*, blunder, bollix, boo-boo, deviate, drop the ball, fall, flub, foul up, go astray, go wrong, goof, lapse, louse up, make a mess of, mess up*, misapprehend, misbehave, miscalculate, misjudge, muff, offend, screw up, sin, slip up, snafu, snarl up, stray, stumble, transgress, trespass, wander |
| Antonyms: | correct |
| Main Entry: | flounder |
| Part of Speech: | verb |
| Definition: | struggle; be in the dark |
| Synonyms: | blunder, bobble, cast about, come apart at the seams, drop the ball, fall down, flop, flummox, foul up, fumble, go at backwards, go to pieces, grope, labor, lurch, make a mess of, miss one's cue, muddle, plunge, pratfall, screw up, slip up, snafu, strive, stub one's toe, stumble, thrash, toil, toss, travail, trip up, tumble, wallow, work at |
| Notes: | founder means to sink, while flounder means to flail helplessly |
| Antonyms: | do well, succeed |
| Main Entry: | foul up |
| Part of Speech: | verb |
| Definition: | make a mess of |
| Synonyms: | botch, bungle, confuse, jumble, mismanage, mix up, muck up, muddle, screw up, snafu, snarl, tumble |
| Antonyms: | fix, mend, organize |