screwup

or screw-up

[ skroo-uhp ]

/ ˈskruˌʌp /

Save This Word!

See synonyms for screwup on Thesaurus.com

noun Slang.

a mistake or blunder: The package was delayed through an addressing screwup.

a habitual blunderer.

QUIZ

CAN YOU ANSWER THESE COMMON GRAMMAR DEBATES?

There are grammar debates that never die; and the ones highlighted in the questions in this quiz are sure to rile everyone up once again. Do you know how to answer the questions that cause some of the greatest grammar debates?

Question 1 of 7

Which sentence is correct?

His boss, whom he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

His boss, who he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Origin of screwup

1955–60; Americanism; noun use of verb phrase screw up

Words nearby screwup

screw propeller, screw someone out of, screw tap, screw thread, screw-top, screwup, screw up one's courage, screwworm, screwworm fly, screwy, screw you

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use screwup in a sentence

Plenty of research screwups get quietly cleaned up and never mentioned.
They called it a conspiracy theory. But Alina Chan tweeted life into the idea that the virus came from a lab.|Antonio Regalado|June 25, 2021|MIT Technology Review

British Dictionary definitions for screwup

screw up

verb (tr, adverb)

to twist out of shape or distort

to summon up or call uponto screw up one's courage

(also intr) informal to mishandle or make a mess (of)

(often passive) informal to cause to become very anxious, confused, or nervoushe is really screwed up about his exams

noun screw-up

slang something mishandled or 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

Other Idioms and Phrases with screwup

screw up

Muster or summon up; see pluck up one's courage.

Make a mess of an undertaking; also, make a mistake, as in I really screwed up this report, or She said she was sorry, admitting that she had screwed up. Some authorities believe this usage is a euphemism for fuck up. [Slang; c. 1940]

Injure, damage, as in I screwed up my back lifting all those heavy books. [Slang]

Make neurotic or anxious, as in Her family really screwed her up, but her therapist has helped her a lot. [Slang; mid-1900s]