as in to fumble
to make or do (something) in a clumsy or unskillful way
I swear, she mucks up everything she tries
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Recent Examples of muck up
Part of that journey was squaring Montoya’s goal of playing entertaining, attacking soccer with mucking up the game.
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Michael Nowels, The Mercury News, 13 Nov. 2024
Draymond Green, who has been terrific this season defensively, constantly mucked up the paint with rotations.
—Danny Emerman, The Mercury News, 6 Nov. 2024
This wouldn’t be the first time such a discrepancy mucks up the MCU.
—Siddhant Adlakha, Vulture, 26 July 2024
Stock market The stock market is off to its best start to a year since 1997 but a massive dockworkers strike underway in the US could muck up some of that progress, economists say.
—Alexandra Banner, CNN, 2 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for muck up 
Michael Nowels, The Mercury News, 13 Nov. 2024
Draymond Green, who has been terrific this season defensively, constantly mucked up the paint with rotations.
—Danny Emerman, The Mercury News, 6 Nov. 2024
This wouldn’t be the first time such a discrepancy mucks up the MCU.
—Siddhant Adlakha, Vulture, 26 July 2024
Stock market The stock market is off to its best start to a year since 1997 but a massive dockworkers strike underway in the US could muck up some of that progress, economists say.
—Alexandra Banner, CNN, 2 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for muck up
Recent Examples of Synonyms for muck up
Verb
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By contrast, their opponents have fumbled 21 times, with the Chiefs pouncing on eight of those.Vahe Gregorian, Kansas City Star, 3 Jan. 2025
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Junior running back Ashton Jeanty fumbled the ball twice — one of those was recovered by the Broncos — en route to falling just short of breaking Barry Sanders’ single-season rushing record.Shaun Goodwin, Idaho Statesman, 2 Jan. 2025
Verb
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Credit them with winning 10 games although losing three of their last four and blowing a chance to win the ACC championship and get into the playoff put a huge damper on the season.Mike Bianchi, Orlando Sentinel, 11 Jan. 2025
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The December jobs report showed the U.S. economy blowing past expectations to end the year.Sylvan Lane, The Hill, 10 Jan. 2025
Verb
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When politicians screw up on a public stage, those blunders can be, at best, meme-ified and, at worst, career-ending.Paul Du Quenoy, Newsweek, 31 Dec. 2024
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But Mike gets in his face to say that Brady's the one screwing up his own life.Sara Netzley, EW.com, 19 Dec. 2024
Verb
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For just one of 67 counties to use the wrong one could foul up an entire statewide count.Sun Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 6 Jan. 2024
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See the stunning shot... AIRLINE 'CHAOS' – A flight was canceled after someone fouled up the aircraft amid delays.Fox News Staff, Fox News, 19 Oct. 2023
Verb
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However, for some, gambling is an addiction that can ruin lives and families.Don Sweeney, Kansas City Star, 9 Jan. 2025
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Well, Neptune and his Wildcats might just be ruining the convenient narrative.CJ Moore, The Athletic, 9 Jan. 2025
Verb
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The unidentified person was apprehended after having been booted from the flight before takeoff, Delta said in a statement Thursday.Jay Blackman, NBC News, 26 Dec. 2024
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Many fans reported on social media experiencing long buffering times or being booted from the stream.Juliana Kim, NPR, 21 Dec. 2024
Thesaurus Entries Near muck up
Cite this Entry
“Muck up.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/muck%20up. Accessed 15 Jan. 2025.
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