gum up

verb

1. to cover, dab, or stiffen with gum

2. informal,  to make a mess of; bungle (often in the phrase gum up the works )

Idioms and Phrases

Ruin or bungle something, as in The front office has gummed up the sales campaign thoroughly. This idiom is also put as gum up the works, as in John's changes in procedures have gummed up the works in the shipping department. [Slang; c. 1900]

Example Sentences

"It's like Velcro dirt," he said, noting it "just gums up mechanisms".

From BBC

And despite the claims that she’s gumming up the state’s process with her appeals, Gilbert has never actually reversed a council decision.

From Salon

Axios reports that Trump's advisers are preparing for a potential third impeachment of the president and strategizing ways to pass key agenda items before a congressional trial gums up the works.

From Salon

The outcry wasn't entirely fair to Klobuchar who turned immediately after the quote in question to discuss real ways of gumming up the worst actions of the Trump administration.

From Salon

Many importers then quietly used the San Pedro ports to store containers, causing a logjam of ships waiting to berth and gumming up the entire supply chain system.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• bungle