snafu

/snæˈfu/

Other forms: snafus; snafued; snafuing

A snafu is an obstacle or glitch that keeps you from accomplishing something. We hoped to get to the campsite before sundown, but due to several snafus along the way, including a run-in with a bear, we didn't set up camp until midnight.

Snafu was originally a World War II-era military acronym standing for "situation normal: all fouled up" (although stronger language was frequently used in place of the word "fouled"). Back in the military, a snafu would have been a dangerous situation, but this word is used now for any kind of error, goof, or mixed-up situation. If you drive all the way to the baseball stadium before realizing you left your tickets at home, that's a snafu.

Definitions of snafu

1. noun

   an acronym often used by soldiers in World War II ("situation normal: all fouled up")
   type of:

   bloomer, blooper, blunder, boo-boo, botch, bungle, flub, foul-up, pratfall

   an embarrassing mistake
2. adjective

   snarled or stalled in complete confusion
   synonyms:

   disorganised, disorganized

   lacking order or methodical arrangement or function
3. verb

   cause to be in a state of complete confusion
   type of:

   embrangle, snarl, snarl up

   make more complicated or confused through entanglements