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foul-up
[ foul-uhp ]
noun
- a condition of difficulty or disorder brought on by inefficiency, stupidity, etc.
- failure of a mechanical part to operate correctly.
- a person who habitually makes mistakes; bungler.
foul up
verb
- tr to bungle; mismanage
- tr to make dirty; contaminate
- to be or cause to be blocked, choked, or entangled
noun
- a state of confusion or muddle caused by bungling
51³Ô¹Ï History and Origins
Origin of foul-up1
Idioms and Phrases
Blunder or cause to blunder; botch, ruin. For example, He's fouled up this report, but I think we can fix it , or Our plans were fouled up by the bad weather . This expression is widely believed to have originated as a euphemism for fuck up . [ Colloquial ; c. 1940]Example Sentences
“The reason why you wouldn’t check a bag is that eliminates one of the foul-up points,†Brancatelli said.
After that, Barney steps way back, and Lee, after a major mission foul-up, is fired by his girlfriend, played by Megan Fox, who takes over the leadership role.
What had seemed like abandonment turned out to be a pet-sitting foul-up, but the owner also needed help with some veterinary issues, said Kris Lindsay, who oversees the recovery center.
But the Democrat, Daniel Schramm, later told reporters he would vote to certify on Wednesday, after having time to confirm that the foul-up didn’t disenfranchise any voters.
Mark Finchem, Republican candidate for Secretary of State, called the foul-up “unacceptable performance.â€
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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
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