Characters remaining: 500/500
Translation

muck up

Academic
Friendly

Word: Muck Up

Definition:
The phrase "muck up" is a verb that means to make a mess of something or to ruin it. It can also mean to soil something with mud or dirt.

Usage Instructions:
  • You can use "muck up" when talking about making mistakes or messing things up, whether it's a task, an event, or even an appearance.
  • It's often used in informal contexts.
Examples:

  1. Making a Mess:

    • "The child mucked up his shirt while playing ball in the garden." (This means the child got his shirt dirty.)

  2. Ruin a Task:

    • "I mucked up the presentation by forgetting my notes." (This means the presentation did not go well because of forgetting the notes.)
Advanced Usage:
  • "Mucking up" can refer to any situation where something does not go as planned, such as in work or personal projects.
  • It often carries a tone of frustration or disappointment.
Word Variants:
  • Muck (noun): Refers to dirt or filth, often used to describe a messy situation.
  • Mucked (past tense): Used to indicate that something has already been messed up.
Different Meanings:

  1. Physical Mess:

    • "He mucked up the garden by digging too much." (He made the garden messy.)

  2. Figurative Mess:

    • "She really mucked up her chances of getting the job." (She ruined her chances.)
Synonyms:
  • Mess up
  • Botch
  • Screw up
  • Ruin
  • spoil
Idioms and Phrasal Verbs:
  • Screw Up: Similar to "muck up," meaning to make a mistake or mess something up.
  • Botch Up: Another term meaning to carry out a task badly or to mess something up.
Summary:

"Muck up" is an informal phrase used to describe making a mess or ruining something, whether it's due to carelessness or mistakes.

Verb
  1. soil with mud, muck, or mire
    • The child mucked up his shirt while playing ball in the garden
  2. make a mess of, destroy or ruin
    • I botched the dinner and we had to eat out
    • the pianist screwed up the difficult passage in the second movement

Synonyms

Similar Spellings

Comments and discussion on the word "muck up"