to screw the pooch
9
9.9
- idiom
- Offensive
:
cagarla
- He screwed the pooch when he forgot to save the data before the crash.
- really screwed the pooch
- screwed the pooch on this one
- screwed the pooch this time
Examples
-
I guess I screwed the pooch by overstating my case.
Blog text (7) -
You surely screwed the pooch last night, didn't you?
-
We may have screwed the pooch on this one.
-
Your boy really screwed the pooch.
-
Johnson screwed the pooch again.
Fiction book (2002) -
We have really screwed the pooch, America.
Blog text (15) -
Just watch you don't screw the pooch.
-
Why don't you just make sure you don't screw the pooch?
-
We really screwed the pooch by missing the deadline for the project.
-
After the expensive mistake, I realized we had screwed the pooch on our budget.
Synonyms
641
6.3
To make a mistake that ruins what you are doing
203
9.9
To make a serious mistake that ruins something
37
9.9
To do something badly and ruin how it turns out
17
5.6
To make a silly or careless mistake
To make a serious, embarrassing mistake by being careless
Antonyms
How Serious
- Offensive
9
9.9
- Informal
597
2.8
49
3.0
37
1.0
50
5.5
- Informal
27
4.1
Surface Forms
Morphology
screw + the + pooch
The meaning 'to make a serious or costly mistake' is not derivable from the literal constituents 'screw' (given here as 'dishonestly cheat or swindle' or sex) and 'pooch' (dog); those words do not naturally combine to indicate error. This is slangy, culture-specific idiomatic usage (and distinct from the more transparent 'screw up'), so a B1 learner who knows the parts would very likely not predict the idiomatic meaning.
Etymology
The idiom screw the pooch comes from blunt American military slang. One popular story says the rude, strong picture of screw and pooch helped the saying stick, so it now means 'to make a serious or costly mistake'.