mess up
phrasal verb
messed up; messing up; messes up
informal
: to make a mistake : to do something incorrectly
About halfway into the recipe, I realized that I had messed up, and I had to start over.
—often + onShe's afraid she'll mess up on the test.
I messed up on my first attempt.
Examples of mess up in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
So, the boys were just waiting for one of them to mess up, right?
—
Charlotte Walsh, Vulture, 12 Mar. 2025
Twenty-two percent worry about the potentially dangerous consequences of messing up, such as plumbing leaks or electrical problems.
—Kristine Gill, Better Homes & Gardens, 9 Mar. 2025
Severide advised Damon to keep his head down and wait for Jenner to mess up in some other way.
—Vlada Gelman, TVLine, 5 Mar. 2025
Giving your teammates room to play, actual space to mess up, pivot and then try again can have a hugely beneficial long-term performance outcome.
—Chris Hendrix, Forbes, 19 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for mess up
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Charlotte Walsh, Vulture, 12 Mar. 2025
Twenty-two percent worry about the potentially dangerous consequences of messing up, such as plumbing leaks or electrical problems.
—Kristine Gill, Better Homes & Gardens, 9 Mar. 2025
Severide advised Damon to keep his head down and wait for Jenner to mess up in some other way.
—Vlada Gelman, TVLine, 5 Mar. 2025
Giving your teammates room to play, actual space to mess up, pivot and then try again can have a hugely beneficial long-term performance outcome.
—Chris Hendrix, Forbes, 19 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for mess up
Cite this Entry
“Mess up.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/mess%20up. Accessed 22 Mar. 2025.
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