fiasco

1 of 2

noun (1)

fi·​as·​co fē-ˈa-(ˌ)skō 

also

-ˈä- 

plural fiascoes

: a complete failure

The critic called the film a fiasco.

… the total fiasco that was his personal life …

—Margaret Atwood

fiasco

2 of 2

noun (2)

fi·​as·​co fē-ˈä-(ˌ)skō  -ˈa- 

plural fiascoes also fiaschi fē-ˈä-(ˌ)skē 

-ˈa-

: bottle, flask

especially : a bulbous long-necked straw-covered bottle for wine

Synonyms

Noun (1)

• bomb
• bummer
• bust
• catastrophe
• clinker
• clunker
• debacle
• débâcle
• disaster
• dud
• failure
• fizzle
• flop
• frost
• lemon
• loser
• miss
• shipwreck
• turkey
• washout

Examples of fiasco in a Sentence

Noun (1)

undaunted by his early fiascoes, he continued his experiments in rocketry

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Note that not a single member involved in the texting fiasco, including at least one top official who appears to have participated while traveling in Russia, was sensible enough to question their collective lack of operational security. —Gary Baum, HollywoodReporter, 26 Mar. 2025

There’s the Hail Mary fiasco and its fallout, but Stevenson also continued to rotate with Smith last season. —Kevin Fishbain, The Athletic, 25 Mar. 2025

And to be clear: Butler deserves far more of the blame for his fiasco, because of his deplorable behavior in his final months with the Heat. —Barry Jackson, Miami Herald, 25 Mar. 2025

The Trump administration's Signal fiasco has given Democrats an unexpected shot to go on offense, with a pair of hearings in the next two days. —Justin Green, Axios, 24 Mar. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Noun (1)

French, from Italian, from fare fiasco, literally, to make a bottle

Noun (2)

Italian, from Late Latin flasco bottle — more at flask

First Known Use

Noun (1)

circa 1854, in the meaning defined above

Noun (2)

1887, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for fiasco

• casco

Kids Definition

fiasco

noun

fi·​as·​co

fē-ˈas-kō

plural fiascoes

: a complete failure