shambles

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.

Under US pressure, she is grappling with leading a country saddled with the world's largest proven oil reserves but an economy in shambles.

From Barron's • Mar. 26, 2026

Experts say these policy shifts have broken a student loan system that was already in shambles, leaving nearly 45 million borrowers, disproportionately women, in financial and emotional distress.

From Salon • Mar. 17, 2026

Much of the Chicago public school system is in shambles.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 3, 2026

The care given to a 45-year-old man with disabilities who died from sepsis after not being given the correct medication for 34 hours has been described as a "shambles" by his mother.

From BBC • Dec. 16, 2025

A sweetness gathered in his breast as he saw the room being turned into a shambles, a sweet moment of triumph that compensated for all the other lousy things, his terrible marks, the black box.

From "The Chocolate War" by Robert Cormier