to screw up
641
6.3
- phrasal verb
- /skruː ʌp/
- Informal
:
equivocarse
- She was afraid she would screw up the presentation if she didn't prepare more.
So AMD really can't screw this up for the rest of us.
- So AMD really can't screw this up for the rest of us.
- Well, they either ascend or they descend and they screw things up, right?
- And we're lucky that life didn't screw them up so that they couldn't follow.
- And when you screw it up, you look like a loser.
- Then the answer is we will not screw it up in the first place.
- What if I screw it up with this amazing person?
- You didn't screw it up by introducing them to your life.
- I really didn't want to screw up as a parent, but you do.
- There's so many ways to screw up in retail.
- It is really hard to screw up the right thing.
Examples
-
I screwed up, and Michael spent eight years in prison.
-
I mean, dude, you screwed up big, big, big time.
-
The pressure to not screw up just gets bigger and bigger.
-
Yeah, Jesus, I screwed it up on the very last thing.
-
What if we have kids and I screw up my kids?
-
So today, how have you screwed up today?
-
What if I screw it up with this amazing person?
-
Well, I mean, you know, I screwed up.
-
I'm sorry I screwed up.
-
Then came the day when I lost the groove and screwed up my schedule.
Academic text (1999)
Synonyms
597
2.8
To make a mistake that causes a problem
295
3.0
To forget something by accident
265
5.3
To waste a lot of money on things you do not need
203
9.9
To make a serious mistake that ruins something
80
2.8
To make something less good or enjoyable
63
6.0
To do something badly and spoil the result
37
9.9
To do something badly and ruin how it turns out
27
4.9
Make a mistake or cause someone else to make one
27
4.1
To make a small careless mistake
20
4.9
Deal with something badly so it causes problems or damage
19
3.5
To do something clumsily and make a mistake
17
5.6
To make a silly or careless mistake
16
6.8
To do something clumsily so it causes mistakes
9
9.9
Make a very bad mistake because you are not careful
8
6.4
To make a mistake that ruins something because you are careless
7
4.4
To make a careless mistake by acting or speaking without thinking
5
8.2
To fail to catch or handle something because you are clumsy
5
7.6
To ruin something by making mistakes or doing it badly
4
8.1
To make a mess of a plan or task by doing it badly
2
6.8
To make an embarrassing mistake because you are careless or nervous
2
5.4
To make a mistake especially by forgetting words on stage
2
6.7
Do a job badly and make a mess of it
1
4.2
Do something that is a serious and embarrassing mistake
1
8.4
To do something wrong by accident in a small, silly way
1
7.9
To do something badly and ruin how it turns out
1
9.9
To do something so badly that it fails
1
7.4
To make a small mistake when trying to do something, for example in sport or speech
1
9.9
To ruin something by making a mistake or being careless
To spoil or ruin something by making a careless mistake
To ruin something by doing it badly
To make a serious, embarrassing mistake by being careless
To do something small and silly by accident
To do something badly so it goes wrong
To do something badly and make it fail
To ruin something by a careless mistake
Do a job badly so it does not work
Antonyms
How Serious
∞
2.0
- Informal
641
6.3
- Informal
597
2.8
37
1.0
50
5.5
- Informal
27
4.1
Surface Forms
Morphology
screw + up
The verb 'screw' has a core sense of twisting/tightening and the particle 'up' often signals increase/completion, so the image of 'twisting/tightening' maps reasonably to 'contorting the face' — learners can partially infer the meaning. However this is a metaphorical extension from a mechanical sense and the exact bodily-contortion sense may not be fully predictable without exposure, so it is not fully transparent.
Etymology
Screw up may come from the simple image of twisting and crumpling something: you screw a piece of paper up into a ball and ruin it. That's why it means 'to make a mistake' or 'to ruin something'.