trip up

Idioms  

1. Make or cause someone to make a mistake, as in The other finalist tripped up when he was asked to spell “trireme,” or They tripped him up with that difficult question. [Second half of 1700s]

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Example Sentences

“I don’t think this will trip up their plans for the studio’s future,” he said.

From MarketWatch • Jun. 25, 2026

There are endless so-called edge cases—unusual situations—that could trip up self-driving cars.

From Barron's • Jun. 18, 2026

Thick hair, tattoos, darker pigmentation or aggressive movement can trip up sensors, says John Schuna, associate professor of kinesiology at Oregon State University.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 7, 2026

But a year after her last trip up a mountain, while working in communications, she became so ill her parents had to rush her to hospital, where she realised she could not feel her legs.

From BBC • May 30, 2026

And he’d earned this trip up the social ladder through his hard work at Vincent de Paul.

From "The Dead and the Gone" by Susan Beth Pfeffer

Related Words

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