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]

---

Example Sentences

Unburdened by the contemporary setting that sometimes trips up a filmmaker’s boldest ideas, Mona Fastvold’s “The Testament of Ann Lee” is perhaps the year’s most extraordinarily perceptive film.

From Salon

Pittsburgh was briefly in the mix until it got tripped up against Miami.

From The Wall Street Journal

One report that tripped up Wall Street this week a tally of announced U.S. layoffs by large companies.

From MarketWatch

When John Kennedy returned to the island that evening, he tripped up to Gasa and Kumana—and fell into their arms.

From Literature

The third element that trips up users of dental, vision and hearing benefits on Medicare Advantage is the plans’ limited networks.

From MarketWatch

Related Words

• flounder
• hesitate
• reel
• waver
• wobble