cockup

American

[kok-uhp] / ˈkɒkˌʌp /

noun

an upward turn or curl at the top of something.
a cap or hat with the front turned up.
British Slang. mess; botch.

cockup British

/ ˈkɒkˌʌp /

noun

slang something done badly

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

verb

(of an animal) to raise (its ears), esp in an alert manner
slang to botch

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of cockup

First recorded in 1685–95; cock ² + up

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

cockup

This is a technological cockup that HBO should have resolved years ago.

From The Verge ● Mar. 14, 2022

The bureaucratic cockup, such a feature of murder mysteries, rarely appears on The Fall.

From Slate ● Jan. 14, 2015

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023