1
as in to fumble
to make a mistake
we must have goofed up somewhere, because this cake clearly didn't turn out right
Synonyms & Similar Words
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2
as in to blow
to make or do (something) in a clumsy or unskillful way
he goofed up his first sale at the dealership
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for goof (up)
Verb
-
And Volodymyr Zelenskyy also fumbled the bag pretty hard.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
2 Mar. 2025 -
Arriving in England in 1929, Queenie fumbled around on the edges of the entertainment business, hoping to be an actor.—
Carolyn Kellogg,
Los Angeles Times,
26 Feb. 2025
Verb
-
Tree limbs could be blown down and a few power outages may result.—
CA Weather Bot,
Sacramento Bee,
12 Mar. 2025
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Sparks or embers can blow into leaves or grass, ignite a fire, and quickly spread.—
Faisal Kutty,
Newsweek,
12 Mar. 2025
Verb
-
Sure, trips to the salon for cut, color, treatment and styling provide some form of hair and scalp care, but only on a cosmetic level.—
Bianca Salonga,
Forbes,
5 Mar. 2025
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Denver then countered a White-to-Kornet lob and a White 3-pointer on back-to-back Boston trips with consecutive threes from Braun and Murray, who was far more effective over the final three quarters.—
Zack Cox,
Hartford Courant,
2 Mar. 2025
Verb
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The main character, a married artist in her mid-forties, sets out from her Los Angeles home, stumbles into a psychosexual dynamic with a young rental-car attendee, and decides to remodel a motel room into a love nest.—
Jennifer Wilson,
The New Yorker,
10 Mar. 2025
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Everything will then be sold – unless he’s stumbled across a famous ball.—
Don Riddell,
CNN,
10 Mar. 2025
Verb
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Poor performance is 95% the result of work processes breaking down, not employees screwing up.—
Letters to the Editor,
Orlando Sentinel,
25 Feb. 2025
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The stalking may just have been a way to bide time and screw up the courage for a dinner invite, but after their meal, Burt’s Outie might not be wholly innocent or trustworthy.—
Proma Khosla,
IndieWire,
22 Feb. 2025
Verb
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Title-winning odds and relegation implications Arsenal slipping up at the King Power could be the final nail in the coffin for the Gunners’ chances of catching – and usurping – Liverpool.—
Julia Ranney,
The Athletic,
14 Feb. 2025
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Brentford, meanwhile, know that victory could take them into the top half of the table should Fulham slip up at Newcastle.—
Oli Gamp,
The Athletic,
2 Feb. 2025
Verb
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Alli Jo adds that the kids left school to appear on the date with Grant and the ladies, so Zoe ruined their day, too.—
Kristen Baldwin,
EW.com,
11 Mar. 2025
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During the 2020 election campaign, Trump said the AFFH rule would ruin the suburbs by forcing more affordable housing.—
Nathaniel Meyersohn,
CNN,
11 Mar. 2025
Verb
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This brings back the Bilas comment from long ago on fouling up two.—
Joe Rexrode,
The Athletic,
24 Feb. 2025
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In between those foul shots, the Jayhawks intentionally fouled up three.—
Shreyas Laddha,
Kansas City Star,
29 Jan. 2025
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
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Cite this Entry
“Goof (up).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/goof%20%28up%29. Accessed 19 Mar. 2025.
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