How do you use "Balls-up" in a sentence?

The whole project was a complete balls-up. Don't balls this up. They made a right balls-up of it.

Balls-up

Q: What does "Balls-up" mean?

A complete mess or serious mistake. A major blunder or fiasco. Slightly cruder than 'cock-up' but equally common in British English.

Slang Term BritishAustralian ★★★★☆ Common Very Casual

Practice this with flashcards, quizzes & audio on WordLoci →

Meaning: A complete mess or serious mistake.

一团糟，严重失误

desastre total, cagada monumental

大失態、めちゃくちゃ

완전한 엉망, 심각한 실수

A major blunder or fiasco. Slightly cruder than 'cock-up' but equally common in British English.

重大失误或惨败。比'cock-up'稍微粗俗一些，但在英式英语中同样常见。

Un error garrafal o fiasco. Un poco más vulgar que 'cock-up' pero igualmente común en inglés británico.

大きな失敗や大失態。「cock-up」より少し下品だが、イギリス英語では同様によく使われる。

큰 실수나 대참사. 'cock-up'보다 약간 거친 표현이지만 영국 영어에서 마찬가지로 흔히 쓰임.

Literal meaning: Messed up (crude slang)

Examples

The whole project was a complete balls-up.
整个项目完全搞砸了
Todo el proyecto fue un desastre total
プロジェクト全体が完全にめちゃくちゃだった
프로젝트 전체가 완전히 엉망이었어.
Don't balls this up.
别把这事搞砸了
No la cagues con esto
これを台無しにするなよ
이거 망치지 마.
They made a right balls-up of it.
他们把事情彻底搞砸了
La cagaron pero bien
彼らは見事に台無しにした
그들은 완전히 망쳐놨어.

Pronunciation

/ˈbɔːlz ʌp/

Usage Guide

Context: mistake, failure, mess

Tone: emphatic, frustrated

✓ Do Say

Complete balls-up.
彻底搞砸了
Un desastre completo
完全にめちゃくちゃだ
완전 엉망이야.
Don't balls it up.
别搞砸了
No la cagues
台無しにしないでよ
망치지 마.
What a balls-up!
搞得一团糟！
¡Vaya cagada!
なんてしくじりだ！
정말 엉망이야!

✗ Don't Say

Big mess
大混乱
Gran desastre
大きな混乱
큰 난장판
Total failure
彻底失败
Fracaso total
完全な失敗
완전한 실패

Common Mistakes

Crude but common
Not suitable for formal situations

Origin & History

From crude slang for making a mess.

Etymology: British slang

First recorded: 20th century

Cultural Context

Era: Modern

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal

Pop culture: British comedy; British TV

Regional notes: British and Australian, crude but common.

Variations

Balls-upBalls it upBallsed up