mess things up
1mess (something) up — 1. to break, damage, or spoil something. She worries that X rays could mess up her laptop s hard drive. I messed up my ankle playing touch football. Most of kids at the party were well behaved, but there s always a few who mess things up. 2. to… …
2mess — mess1 S2 [mes] n ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ 1¦(dirty/untidy)¦ 2¦(problems/difficulties)¦ 3 make a mess of (doing) something 4¦(person)¦ 5 a mess of something 6¦(army/navy)¦ 7¦(waste substance)¦ ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ [Date: 1200 1300; : Old French; Origin: mes …
3mess up — 1) PHRASAL VERB If you mess something up or if you mess up, you cause something to fail or be spoiled. [INFORMAL] [V n P] When politicians mess things up, it is the people who pay the price... [V P n (not pron)] He had messed up one career... [V …
4mess — [mes] n. [ME messe < OFr mes < L missus, a course (at a meal), orig. pp. of mittere, to send, put: see MISSION] 1. a portion or quantity of food for a meal or dish 2. a portion of soft or semiliquid food, as porridge 3. unappetizing food;… …
5Mess — (m[e^]s), n. [OE. mes, OF. mets, LL. missum, p. p. of mittere to put, place (e. g., on the table), L. mittere to send. See {Mission}, and cf. {Mass} religious service.] 1. A quantity of food set on a table at one time; provision of food for a… …
6Mess — For other uses, see Mess (disambiguation). A mess (also called a messdeck aboard ships) is the place where military personnel socialise, eat, and (in some cases) live. In some societies this military usage has extended to other disciplined… …
7mess — mess1 [ mes ] noun ** ▸ 1 when someone/something is dirty ▸ 2 when there are problems ▸ 3 someone with problems ▸ 4 solid waste from animal ▸ 5 mess hall ▸ + PHRASES 1. ) count or uncount a situation in which a place is dirty or not neat: Your… …
8mess — 1 noun 1 DIRTY/UNTIDY (singular, uncountable) a situation in which a place looks very untidy or dirty, with things spread all around: Clean up this mess! | The house was an awful mess after the party. | make a mess: You can make cookies if you… …
9mess — noun ADJECTIVE ▪ absolute, complete, fine (esp. AmE), hopeless, real, royal (esp. AmE), total, utter ▪ I got myself into a complete mess …
10mess — n. & v. n. 1 a dirty or untidy state of things (the room is a mess). 2 a state of confusion, embarrassment, or trouble. 3 something causing a mess, e.g. spilt liquid etc. 4 a domestic animal s excreta. 5 a a company of persons who take meals… …
