snafu
a badly confused or ridiculously muddled situation: A ballot snafu in the election led to a recount.
an error or miscalculation, especially one leading to a confused or muddled situation:After some snafu deleted all my data files, I've finally managed to rebuild everything—I think!
Also sna·fued . in disorder; out of control; chaotic: What you’re proposing is a snafu scheme that simply won't work.
to throw into disorder; muddle: Losing his passport snafued the whole vacation.
Origin of snafu
1Other words for snafu
Opposites for snafu
1 | calm, organization, order, orderliness |
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use snafu in a sentence
Tech snafus are also part of Democratic offensives against two Republicans running for reelection this year.
Even the Most Powerful Man in the World Is at the Mercy of the IT Guy | Jill Lawrence | March 5, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTBut now...the media still tend to focus on the snafus, another of which occurred for about an hour Monday.
Beware, Republicans: HealthCare.gov Will Rise Again | Michael Tomasky | November 28, 2013 | THE DAILY BEASTDespite the usual snafus, Urgent Fury was operationally and politically successful.
Remembering The Invasion of Grenada 30 Years On | Michael Ledeen | October 24, 2013 | THE DAILY BEASTWeiner and Spitzer may be punch lines, the more serious and unending litany of public-sector snafus is anything but a joke.
No One Trusts the Government—and That’s Bad News for Libertarians | Nick Gillespie | July 12, 2013 | THE DAILY BEASTYou heard the panicky tones of operatives flooded with calls from the field about technical snafus and mass confusion.
The Romney Campaign’s Ground Game Fiasco | Eli Lake, Daniel Klaidman, Ben Jacobs | November 9, 2012 | THE DAILY BEAST
Inside, there were just about the same number of last-minute panics and snafus as at most 3-D spectaculars.
Telempathy | Vance Simonds
British Dictionary definitions for snafu
/ (snæˈfuː) slang mainly military /
confusion or chaos regarded as the normal state
(postpositive) confused or muddled up, as usual
(tr) US and Canadian to throw into chaos
Origin of snafu
1Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Browse