Makes a mess
To balls up is to bungle or mishandle something badly, making a mess of it: He completely ballsed up the presentation.
Chiefly British.
A balls-up is the resulting mess or failure: The whole project was a balls-up from the start.
The expression derives from balls meaning testicles, suggesting something has gone embarrassingly wrong.
IDEA.org / Words / balls up
Makes a mess
To balls up is to bungle or mishandle something badly, making a mess of it: He completely ballsed up the presentation.
Chiefly British.
A balls-up is the resulting mess or failure: The whole project was a balls-up from the start.
The expression derives from balls meaning testicles, suggesting something has gone embarrassingly wrong.
1. blunder — mistake, Wrong action or decision; error (Fault in communication); bungle (Fail through clumsiness); botch (Spoil through incompetence); mess · fiasco · snafu · screwup · foul-up · cock-up · hash · shambles · debacle · flub
COMPETENCE/SUCCESS IN EXECUTIONballs up ≠ nail Metal fastener or keratin plate; ace · pull off · get right · nail it · succeed
ORDER VS. DISORDERballs up ≠ fix Repair or solution; sort out · straighten out · put right · rectify · remedy
curling up: snuggles, nestles, tucks, coils, rolls up; British slang: blag, bloke, bodge, blagger, bobby
ball, balls, balls-up, ballsy, ball up, ballsiest, ballsiness
Word data: Linguabase (CC0) · www.idea.org/words/balls_up