as in fumbling
to make or do (something) in a clumsy or unskillful way
I swear, she mucks up everything she tries
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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 mucking up
Amid the memory shortage that's mucking up component prices globally, at least Qualcomm has some promising news for folks hoping to pay less for a daily driver.
—
Florence Ion, PC Magazine, 7 May 2026
At least not Will Welch, GQ’s longstanding editor-in-chief and global editorial director, who was absolutely zen about the threat of an atmospheric river mucking up the mag’s Men of the Year celebration last night.
—Chris Gardner, HollywoodReporter, 14 Nov. 2025
What's mucking up the process is a telepathic outlier named The Mule (Pilou Asbæk), whose ravenous appetite for galactic dominance has created anomalies in Seldon's branching prognostications of how this whole ordeal will unfold.
—Jeff Spry, Space.com, 29 Aug. 2025
The hydrogen flow keeps vaporized tin from mucking up the system’s optics.
—IEEE Spectrum, 12 June 2023
Florence Ion, PC Magazine, 7 May 2026
At least not Will Welch, GQ’s longstanding editor-in-chief and global editorial director, who was absolutely zen about the threat of an atmospheric river mucking up the mag’s Men of the Year celebration last night.
—Chris Gardner, HollywoodReporter, 14 Nov. 2025
What's mucking up the process is a telepathic outlier named The Mule (Pilou Asbæk), whose ravenous appetite for galactic dominance has created anomalies in Seldon's branching prognostications of how this whole ordeal will unfold.
—Jeff Spry, Space.com, 29 Aug. 2025
The hydrogen flow keeps vaporized tin from mucking up the system’s optics.
—IEEE Spectrum, 12 June 2023
Recent Examples of Synonyms for mucking up
Verb
-
Santillan appears to be fumbling away his opportunity, allowing nine runs (eight earned) over his last five appearances.—
Mike Barner,
Forbes.com,
15 May 2026
-
But Chet Holmgren and Cason Wallace hit three-pointers while Smart was fumbling the ball and James and Hachimura were missing shots, while an Oklahoma City 8-0 run eventually gave them another 13-point lead that was never again challenged.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
8 May 2026
Verb
-
First of all, don’t hide misdeeds and screwups, which comes naturally by not committing misdeeds and not screwing up.—
Eleanor Dearman,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
14 May 2026
-
These days, revivals that just manage to come and go without screwing up are seen as, if not a success, than an acceptable effort.—
Ben Travers,
IndieWire,
10 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Try to find a place that will block blowing or falling debris.—
CA Weather Bot,
Sacbee.com,
18 May 2026
-
Trump now faces a break-the-glass moment to avoid gas prices from blowing past Biden-era records highs.—
Matt Egan,
CNN Money,
18 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Mucking up.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/mucking%20up. Accessed 24 May. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
