as in to fumble
to make or do (something) in a clumsy or unskillful way
you've mangled this so badly that we'll have to do it over
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of mangle
But that’s about it — for whatever reason, most novelists who achieve success tend to stay in their lane, selling the screen rights to their material off to others to adapt and, often, mangle.
—
Jim Hemphill,
IndieWire,
15 May 2026
Trees along the property were mangled.
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Eric Adler,
Kansas City Star,
27 Apr. 2026
Fuqua’s film understands how precious childhood is, and the way that harsh treatment and rigid social expectations can mangle a young person’s outlook on life.
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Spencer Kornhaber,
The Atlantic,
24 Apr. 2026
The 49ers Hall of Fame safety had his pinkie mangled on a tackle during a game in 1985, and played with a splint before having the digit amputated after the season.
—
Troy Renck,
Denver Post,
13 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for mangle
Jim Hemphill,
IndieWire,
15 May 2026
Trees along the property were mangled.
—
Eric Adler,
Kansas City Star,
27 Apr. 2026
Fuqua’s film understands how precious childhood is, and the way that harsh treatment and rigid social expectations can mangle a young person’s outlook on life.
—
Spencer Kornhaber,
The Atlantic,
24 Apr. 2026
The 49ers Hall of Fame safety had his pinkie mangled on a tackle during a game in 1985, and played with a splint before having the digit amputated after the season.
—
Troy Renck,
Denver Post,
13 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for mangle
Recent Examples of Synonyms for mangle
Verb
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But in her concentration, Porsha fumbled her words, which made the Faithfuls, who were desperate for a crumb of evidence so early in the game, suspicious of her sincerity.
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With Yerry De los Santos also fumbling a bunt in the eighth, the Yanks tallied a season-high four errors on the night.
Verb
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Finally, during penalties, Paraguay was up 3-2 and needed to make only one more kick before missing its last two, nearly blowing the match.
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The sobering reality, however, is that this is a 35-48 team that already has been blown too far off course.
Verb
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Republican hardliners jammed up the House floor this week, in part because of congressional leadership's refusal to attach a version of the election bill, dubbed the SAVE America Act, to the National Defense Authorization Act.
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Tipu himself was found slain near a passageway once used to bring water into the fort; it’s dubbed the Water Gate.
Verb
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However, for some, gambling is an addiction that can ruin lives and families.
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After all, plenty of cocktail enthusiasts already complain about mosquitoes ruining a summer evening.
Verb
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When her plastic surgeon father botches a celebrity nose job at his practice, her parents decide to move from Bel-Air to Seattle.
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The Boston southpaw didn’t permit a baserunner until Spencer Jones, who botched a ball in center field a half-inning later, singled in the sixth inning.
Verb
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The plague victims likely hunted, skinned and butchered marmots for their meat and fur, which would have exposed members of the community to the bacteria, Macleod said.
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Normally, that involves making stone tools, butchering deer, or distilling birch tar.
Verb
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Kylian Mbappe, Romelu Lukaku and Darwin Nunez are some names at the World Cup who have previously bungled a knee slide celebration by diving into the ground, rather than trying to sling themselves along it.
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For now, the press still sometimes bungled his name as Harry.
Verb
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The most common type of dementia, which destroys memory and cognitive function, was responsible for 116,022 deaths in 2024, NCHS data shows.
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That book is a revenge fantasy about the former art school professor who seduced her, discarded her and destroyed her confidence as a painter.
Cite this Entry
“Mangle.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/mangle. Accessed 5 Jul. 2026.
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