Meanings
present singular third person messes up · participle present messing up · participle past messed up · past messed up
- transitiveTo make a mess of; to untidy, disorder, soil, or muss.
The afternoon breeze messed up my hair.
1 more example
[…] kwatumas, those aggressive and sharp-toothed eels that so thoroughly mess up one's tackle when hooked […]
1962, S. Schoeman, Strike!: A Handbook of Angling in South African Coastal Waters, page 58Synonyms: fuck up
- intransitiveTo make a mistake; to do something incorrectly; to perform poorly.
She messed up on her final exam.
2 more examples
He has a hard time getting started because he's afraid he'll mess up.
What? Are we all just supposed to forgive this? This guy messed up in the worst possible way he could! Now we have nothing!
2026 June 19, Gooseworx, “Remember” (1:19 from the start), in The Amazing Digital Circus, episode 9, spoken by Jax (Michael Kovach)Synonyms: fuck up
- transitiveTo cause (another person) to make unwanted mistakes in a given task, usually through distraction or obnoxious behavior.
Stop bumping me! You keep messing me up!
Synonyms: screw up
- slangtransitiveTo discombobulate, utterly confuse, or confound psychologically; to throw into a state of mental disarray.
That girl totally messed me up, man. I'm not sure who I am anymore.
Synonyms: fuck up
Synonyms & antonyms
verbTo make a mess of; to untidy, disorder, soil, or muss.
verbTo cause a problem with; to introduce an error or mistake in; to make muddled or confused; spoil; ruin.
verbTo make a mistake; to do something incorrectly; to perform poorly.
verbTo cause (another person) to make unwanted mistakes in a given task, usually through distraction or obnoxious behavior.
verbTo discombobulate, utterly confuse, or confound psychologically; to throw into a state of mental disarray.
More synonyms by meaning
verbmake a mess of, destroy or ruin
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Translations
Dutch verrommelen, in de war brengen
- verrommelento make a mess of
- in de war brengento make a mess of
Esperanto fuŝi
- fuŝito cause an error or problem in
Finnish sotkea, sekoittaa
- sotkeato make a mess of
- sekoittaato make a mess of
- panna sekaisinto make a mess of
- sotkeato make a mess of
- mokatatransitive: to botch, bungle
- sählätätransitive: to botch, bungle
- möhliätransitive: to botch, bungle
- tumpeloidatransitive: to botch, bungle
- epäonnistuato make a mistake; to do something incorrectly; to perform poorly
- häiritäto cause to make unwanted mistakes
- loukatato damage; injure
- vahingoittaato damage; injure
French gâcher, rater
- gâcherto make a mess of
- ratertransitive: to botch, bungle
- foirertransitive: to botch, bungle
- bâclertransitive: to botch, bungle
- foirerto cause an error or problem in
German durcheinanderbringen, verpfuschen
- durcheinanderbringento make a mess of
- verpfuschentransitive: to botch, bungle
- vermurksentransitive: to botch, bungle
- verkorksentransitive: to botch, bungle
- verpatzentransitive: to botch, bungle
- vermasselnto make a mistake; to do something incorrectly; to perform poorly
Hungarian elront, elszúr
- elronttransitive: to botch, bungle
- elszúrtransitive: to botch, bungle
Italian incasinare
- incasinareto make a mess of
Māori whakapōrohe
- whakapōroheto make a mess of
Portuguese desarrumar, bagunçar
- desarrumarto make a mess of
- bagunçarto make a mess of
Russian провалиться, повредить
- провалиться (provalitʹsja)to make a mistake; to do something incorrectly; to perform poorly
- повредить (povreditʹ)to damage; injure
- сбить с толку (sbitʹ s tolku)to throw into a state of mental disarray
Slovak rozhádzať, zbabrať
- rozhádzaťto make a mess of
- zbabraťtransitive: to botch, bungle
- pokaziťtransitive: to botch, bungle
- kaziťtransitive: to botch, bungle
- zbabrať toto make a mistake; to do something incorrectly; to perform poorly
- vybuchnúťto make a mistake; to do something incorrectly; to perform poorly
- rozbiťto damage; injure
- dobiťto manhandle, beat up
- rozhádzaťto throw into a state of mental disarray
- pokaziťto cause an error or problem in
- kaziťto cause an error or problem in
Spanish desbarajustar, desbarahustar
- desbarajustarto make a mess of
- desbarahustarto make a mess of
- embarullarto make a mess of
- desmadrarto make a mess of
- descolocarto throw into a state of mental disarray
- echar a perderto cause an error or problem in
- chapucearto cause an error or problem in
- chambonear ato cause an error or problem in
- embarrarlato cause an error or problem in
- estropearto cause an error or problem in
- perjudicarto cause an error or problem in
- embrollarto cause an error or problem in
Swedish stöka till
- stöka tillto make a mess of
Tagalog guluhin, guluhin
- guluhinto make a mess of
- guluhinto cause an error or problem in
Ukrainian псувати
- псувати (psuvaty)to damage; injure
Cite this entry
mess up. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/mess%20up
“mess up.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/mess%20up. Accessed November 3, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “mess up,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/mess%20up.
Source: mess up on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.