Dictionary.com

mess-up

[ mes-uhp ]
/ ˈmɛsˌʌp /
SEE SYNONYMS FOR mess-up

noun

a blunder; state of confusion; mix-up.

QUIZZES

BECOME A PRO CHEF WITH THIS EXQUISITE CUISINE QUIZ!

Even if you can't be a professional chef, you can at least talk like one with this vocabulary quiz.
Question 1 of 9
You may have read the word "simmer" in a recipe or two, but what does it really mean?
To cook in water that begins cold and then reaches a boil.
To stew in a sauce for a long time.
To cook in water, just below boiling temperature.
TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Origin of mess-up

First recorded in 1900–05; noun use of verb phrase mess up
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Words related to mess-up

disarray, turmoil, hash, mess, confusion, chaos, muddle, shambles, mix-up, disarrangement, maelstrom, botch, babel, bedlam, havoc, madhouse, disorder, anarchy, disorganization, blooper

Idioms and Phrases with mess-up

mess up
1

Create disorder in; muddle or ruin. For example, On rainy days the children really mess up the house, or He had a way of messing up his own business. [c. 1900]

2

Make a mistake, especially from nervousness or confusion, as in He messed up and took the wrong dossier to the meeting, or Jill swore she would never mess up again. [Colloquial; early 1900s]

3

Beat up, manhandle, as in Joe got messed up in a barroom brawl. [Slang; early 1900s]

The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.