louse up

Idioms  

1. Spoil, ruin, bungle. For example, The bad weather loused up our plans, or Your change of mind really loused me up. This slangy expression originated in World War I, when infestation with lice was the common lot of soldiers in the trenches; its figurative use dates from the 1930s.

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Example Sentences

I didn’t want to louse up the photo opportunity because it was the only chance to get the picture we all wanted, Clinton and Assad.

From Washington Post • Jul. 27, 2018

And then there was the problem of extra innings, a threat that loomed over every game, threatening to louse up our often down-to-the-hour plan.

From Slate • Apr. 2, 2015

One day he decided "to louse up some old cornplasters like Chloe."

From Time Magazine Archive

In the language of the classics, please don't louse up our chances for peace.

From Time Magazine Archive

Only trouble is, they louse up the range scale.

From The Best Made Plans by Dongen, H. R. van