FOUL-UP

Pronunciation (US): (GB):

Meaning:

An embarrassing mistake

Synonyms:

Classified under:

Nouns denoting acts or actions

Hypernyms ("foul-up" is a kind of...):

error; fault; mistake (a wrong action attributable to bad judgment or ignorance or inattention)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "foul-up"):

bobble (the momentary juggling of a batted or thrown baseball)

snafu (an acronym often used by soldiers in World War II: situation normal all fucked up)

spectacle (a blunder that makes you look ridiculous; used in the phrase 'make a spectacle of' yourself)

bull (a serious and ludicrous blunder)

fumble; muff ((sports) dropping the ball)

fluff (a blunder (especially an actor's forgetting the lines))

faux pas; gaffe; gaucherie; slip; solecism (a socially awkward or tactless act)

howler (a glaring blunder)

clanger (a conspicuous mistake whose effects seem to reverberate)

misstep; stumble; trip; trip-up (an unintentional but embarrassing blunder)

Derivation:

foul up (make a mess of, destroy or ruin)