mess up

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

“I like to have my little secret area where I can mess up as many times as I want without any eyes on me.”

From The Wall Street Journal • May 21, 2026

When she asks me to place a hand on my heart again, I do, repeating, “I am here. I did not mess up my kid forever. My timing is impeccable.”

From Slate • May 10, 2026

“There’s a history for the fans. You can’t mess up the Easter eggs. There are specific things you can’t get wrong because you’ll just lose people.”

From Los Angeles Times • Aug. 12, 2025

"It's symbolic now. It's reminder that you can mess up but you can always move forward," he said.

From BBC • Jun. 29, 2025

But I’d never, not even once, gone in the commander in chief’s office, and had Regan not decided to totally mess up my life, I probably never would have.

From "Glitch" by Laura Martin