Bad / Mistake

verb

1 of 46

Bad / Mistake

audio

scuttle - To be forced to cancel one's plans

Because he couldn't give up his smoking habit, Barry had to scuttle his plans to be a great runner.

verb

2 of 46

Bad / Mistake

audio

fizzle - To finish in a way that is disappointing

At the start of his race for mayor it looked like Fred was going to win, but his many verbal mistakes caused his candidacy to just fizzle out.

noun

3 of 46

Bad / Mistake

Url audio

futility - the quality being ineffective, useless, unsuccessful, and achieving nothing.

Elon Musk confronted the common attitude regarding the futility of going to Mars, and is proving them wrong.

noun

4 of 46

Bad / Mistake

audio

fiasco - A thing that is a complete failure, especially in a ludicrous or humiliating way

In the 1980s, Coca-Cola released New Coke, which ended up being one of the costliest business fiascos ever.

adjective

5 of 46

Bad / Mistake

Url audio

humbling - Causing someone to feel less important or proud, often by emphasizing their limitations.

Receiving so much help from strangers during hard times was a humbling experience.

noun

6 of 46

Bad / Mistake

audio

dud - A thing that fails to work properly or is otherwise unsatisfactory or worthless

The firework turned out to be a dud when it landed back on the ground.

noun

7 of 46

Bad / Mistake

Url audio

aberration - A departure from what is normal, usual, or expected.

The principal let Johnny go without any punishment, because his outburst had been an aberration from his usual good behavior.

noun

8 of 46

Bad / Mistake

audio

blunder - A stupid or careless mistake

Emma realized she had made a huge blunder when she accidentally deleted the entire spreadsheet.

verb

9 of 46

Bad / Mistake

Url audio

overreach - To go beyond what is proper, reasonable, or safe—especially in power or ambition; to stretch too far and fail as a result.

The company overreached by expanding too quickly and ended up in debt.

noun

10 of 46

Bad / Mistake

audio

blooper - An embarrassing error

Movies will frequently have blooper reels where the actors laugh and ruin a scene.

noun

See verb

11 of 46

Bad / Mistake

audio

stumble - An act of stumbling

Shane took a stumble when he tripped over a large rock on the sidewalk.

verb

12 of 46

Bad / Mistake

audio

bungle - To carry out a task clumsily or incompetently, leading to failure or an unsatisfactory outcome

The painter bungled his job when he misspelled the word on the road sign.