noun
SNAFU
sna-FOO
noun
1
A confused, chaotic mess or a major mistake, especially one caused by miscommunication or poor planning.
"The delivery snafu meant the cake arrived a day late for the wedding."
verb
1
To mess something up badly.
"Someone snafued the seating chart and half the guests had no table."
How to Use SNAFU
Learner’s notesIn plain EnglishA chaotic mix-up or blunder, often one that feels like business as usual.
When to use it
Informal; the noun is far more common than the verb.
Common pairings
a total snafu
a logistical snafu
Word Forms
snafued past tense, SNAFUs plural, snafus singular
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Etymology
A World War II military acronym for "situation normal, all fouled up" (in its original, cruder form), used by soldiers to describe the everyday chaos of army life.