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
Relevance
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
-
By dumping more toxic substances into the landfills, there’s a higher chance of chemicals leaking into groundwater or becoming part of airborne dust blowing into nearby communities.—
Tony Briscoe,
Los Angeles Times,
12 Mar. 2025
-
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
-
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
-
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
-
Everything will then be sold – unless he’s stumbled across a famous ball.—
Don Riddell,
CNN,
10 Mar. 2025
Verb
-
Poor performance is 95% the result of work processes breaking down, not employees screwing up.—
Letters to the Editor,
Orlando Sentinel,
25 Feb. 2025
-
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
-
Rachel Beck, its executive director, emphasized the group’s opposition to wage theft — seeing it as morally wrong as well as bad for overall business — but also worried about this proposal snaring responsible businesses that slip up.—
Nick Coltrain,
The Denver Post,
16 Mar. 2025
-
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
Verb
-
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
-
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
-
This brings back the Bilas comment from long ago on fouling up two.—
Joe Rexrode,
The Athletic,
24 Feb. 2025
-
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
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Cite this Entry
“Goof (up).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/goof%20%28up%29. Accessed 21 Mar. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share