1 C1 idiomatic slang
To ruin or spoil something through careless or incompetent action.
"Trust him to cocker up the only simple job he was given."
separable
cocker up
C1 slang separable transitive
A dialectal British variant meaning to ruin or spoil something; to make a mess of a situation.
In plain English
To mess something up or ruin it.
What does "cocker up" mean?
One main meaning — here's how to use it.
Usage tip
Extremely rare; found in some northern English dialects. Most speakers are unfamiliar with this form and use 'cock up' instead. Not recommended for productive use by ESL learners.
Words that pair with "cocker up"
Natural word combinations native speakers use most often.
job plan attempt arrangement
How to conjugate "cocker up"
The five tense forms you'll use most often.
Base
cocker up
I/you/we/they
3rd person
cockers up
he/she/it
Past simple
cockered up
yesterday
Past participle
cockered up
have + pp
-ing form
cockering up
continuous
Hear "cocker up" in the wild
Listen to native speakers using "cocker up" in real YouTube videos — click a clip to watch it on Looplines.
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