Duffed

Part of speech: verb, adjective

Definitions

1. To have ruined or spoiled something, particularly in a careless manner
2. to have performed poorly or ineffectively in a task or activity
3. to have caused disappointment or dissatisfaction through inadequate execution or failure

Etymology: Duff as a verb meaning to bungle or botch is a slang sense with murky roots. The most tangible clue is that it may be linked to "duffer," which was originally thieves' slang, and the verb is thought by some to be a back-formation from that noun, meaning the verb was created by stripping an ending off the older word rather than the other way round. That link is only probable, and the word's earliest route into English is not clearly documented. Other explanations have been proposed. One suggests a connection to the northern English and Scots pronunciation of "dough," a dialect form that would have carried associations of something soft, shapeless, or unsatisfactory. Another traces the root to a Proto-Indo-European idea of whisking, smoking, or darkening, though this is uncertain and far removed from the modern sense. "Duffed" is simply the past tense and past participle of this verb, so it describes an attempt that went wrong, as in "he duffed the shot."

Synonyms: hit, struck, whacked, pummeled, banged

Antonyms: protected, shielded, missed