make a hash of

Idioms  

1. Also, make a mess of. Ruin or spoil something, as in They've made a hash of their financial affairs, or She thought he'd make a mess of the garden. The first term, first recorded in 1833, uses hash in the sense of “a jumble of mangled fragments”; the variant, using mess in the sense of “a muddle” or “a state of confusion,” was first recorded in 1862.

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Example Sentences

Gaps in data because of the government shutdown make a hash of the latest federal reports on inflation and economic growth.

From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 8, 2026

It could make a hash of setting interest rates.

From The Guardian • Nov. 10, 2015

Fraud — and the sudden shutdown of a debit and card — can make a hash of people’s financial lives.

From New York Times • Mar. 7, 2014

"You can name the twins Gustavo and Guillermo Barros Schelotto from La Plata, Argentina," adds Ricardo Sigot, neglecting to mention that we'd probably make a hash of pronouncing them.

From The Guardian • Mar. 27, 2013

"If you submitted the whole case to a business man, he'd probably tell you that you were going to make a hash of things."

From Vane of the Timberlands by Bindloss, Harold