foible

American  

[foi-buhl] / ˈfɔɪ bəl /

noun

• foibles
  plural

1. a minor weakness or failing of character; slight flaw or defect.

   an all-too-human foible.

   Synonyms:

   peculiarity, eccentricity, crotchet, quirk, frailty

   Antonyms:

   strength

2. the weaker part of a sword blade, between the middle and the point (opposed to forte).

---

foible British  

/ ˈfɔɪbəl /

noun

1. a slight peculiarity or minor weakness; idiosyncrasy

2. the most vulnerable part of a sword's blade, from the middle to the tip Compare forte 1

---

Synonym Usage

See fault.

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• foibles
  plural

---

Etymology

Origin of foible

First recorded in 1640–50; from French, obsolete form of faible feeble

---

Explanation

If you repeat foible out loud enough times, it sounds so funny that you can laugh at it and maybe remember to laugh at the odd and distinctive weaknesses of others — the foible or two or a hundred that we all have. Sometimes a foible helps make a person who they are, even if the foible, or weakness ("feeble" is a close relative), is a little odd. Synonyms for foible in a negative sense are "failing," "shortcoming," and in a more positive sense "quirk," "eccentricity." It can likewise be annoying or endearing. Most people have a foible, or idiosyncrasy, that stands out to others, but interestingly, a person rarely sees his or her own characteristic foible.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

foible foibles

It helps fund managers justify their salaries and makes ordinary people feel better because of a foible known as the illusion of control.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 2, 2026

"Never For Ever" ultimately produced three Top 20 singles, including the indelible foible "Babooshka."

From Salon ● Sep. 25, 2022

Jones happily recites the joke using the other word, and the two men laugh, having been caught in a foible of their profession.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 26, 2021

This was practically why “Seinfeld” was created; it seems there’s a “Simpsons” reference for just about every human foible.

From New York Times ● Jul. 6, 2021

It is of this marvellous tribute, and how it was won, that we should think,—not of this or that foible or shortcoming, for who is without them?

From Queen Victoria As I Knew Her by Sir Theodore Martin

“It is infectious to play a character who sees the best in people and isn’t mad at the world for all its foibles and bullies and shadows,” Sudeikis recently told the Hollywood Reporter.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 31, 2026

Throughout his career, Neill pitted himself against creatures both real and imagined — or, even more often, somewhere in-between — to reveal humanity’s foibles in the face of the freakish and fantastic.

From Salon ● Jul. 17, 2026

Like the large so-called moon jar that opens the exhibition, these capacious bowls glazed in eggshell white flaunt their foibles with wobbling edges that give character to otherwise pure forms.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 6, 2026

Writing about their failures, foibles and frustrations did not lessen the hold that these three men and their movie magic have on Fischer.

From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 20, 2026

After that, as products of very different backgrounds they were continually scared stiff of hurting each other’s feelings; hence they understood and tolerated their respective foibles almost to the point of obsequiousness.

From "The Milagro Beanfield War" by John Nichols

Random Word

Spin the wheel and learn a new word!

---

Related Words

• eccentricity
• failing
• frailty
• idiosyncrasy
• infirmity
• peculiarity
• quirk
• shortcoming
• weakness

---