FOULED UP Synonyms: 82 Similar and Opposite Words

fouled up

verb

past tense of foul up

as in fumbled

to make or do (something) in a clumsy or unskillful way tried not to foul up the football play

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in stumbled

to make a mistake unfortunately, I fouled up and in my e-mail gave everyone the wrong date for the meeting

Synonyms & Similar Words

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 fouled up 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 Karaban almost had a costly turnover on an inbound play with 14 seconds left, but the Huskies fouled up three and Mulready split his free throw attempts, setting up the game-clinching freebies from the Huskies’ captain. — Joe Arruda, Hartford Courant, 15 Feb. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for fouled up

Verb

However, Cam Skattebo fumbled to give Washington an opportunity.

— ABC News, ABC News, 12 Oct. 2026
With Oregon outside linebacker Nasir Wyatt blitzing, Iamaleava attempted to throw the ball away to the flat and instead fumbled, giving the Ducks the ball on the Bruins’ one-yard-line.

— Connor Dullinger, Los Angeles Times, 12 Oct. 2026

Definition of fumbled

Verb

Drew Rasmussen squandered a two-run lead on the mound, Tampa Bay's bullpen let the game get away and the Rays stumbled to a 7-3 loss against the Cleveland Guardians in their American League Championship Series opener Monday night.

— ABC News, ABC News, 13 Oct. 2026
Kore-eda stumbled on the manga in a bookshop rather than through its serial run.

— Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 7 Oct. 2026

Definition of stumbled

Verb

On Saturday morning, temperatures in the fire area were in the mid-80s and winds blew at about 15 mph.

— Tony Briscoe, Los Angeles Times, 17 Oct. 2026
There have been two times, and maybe three, since 2020 when Baylor should have won the game, but blew it.

— Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 17 Oct. 2026

Definition of blew

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

That doesn’t mean the Yankees screwed up in their process by trading for Stanton.

— Chris Kirschner, New York Times, 23 Aug. 2026
Every time a player screwed up, the coaching staff and his teammates received a text message, calling out both the infraction and the guilty party.

— Dana O’Neil, CNN Money, 14 Aug. 2026

Definition of screwed up

Verb

Up until tonight, Raman has done a good job of communicating a message of hope and change, while Bass, as the incumbent, has repeatedly tripped on her record over the biblically bad four years of her first term.

— Lorraine Ali, Los Angeles Times, 14 Oct. 2026
The truest sign that Joseph had tripped the Rams up with Hufanga’s blitz came by looking at Rams right guard Kevin Dotson.

— Nick Kosmider, New York Times, 2 Oct. 2026

Definition of tripped

Verb

The day is often marked by protests against memorials to Christopher Columbus, for environmental justice, for the return of Indigenous lands and in honor of missing and murdered Indigenous women.

— ABC News, ABC News, 12 Oct. 2026
Now, a new killer has murdered an altar boy and used his blood to write her name.

— Alejandra Gularte, Vulture, 10 Oct. 2026

Definition of murdered

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fouled

fouled up

fouling

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“Fouled up.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/fouled%20up. Accessed 20 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of fouled up

verb

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