fool

¹ American  

[fool] / ful /

noun

1. a silly or stupid person; a person who lacks judgment or sense.

   Synonyms:

   sap, saphead, booby, nincompoop, ninny, dunderhead, ignoramus, numbskull, blockhead, dunce, dolt, simpleton

   Antonyms:

   genius

2. a professional jester, formerly kept by a person of royal or noble rank for amusement.

   the court fool.

   Synonyms:

   clown, zany

3. a person who has been tricked or deceived into appearing or acting silly or stupid.

   to make a fool of someone.

4. an ardent enthusiast who cannot resist an opportunity to indulge an enthusiasm.

   He's just a dancing fool.

5. a weak-minded or idiotic person.

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verb (used with object)

fools, present (3rd person singular) fooled, past participle, past fooling present participle

1. to trick, deceive, or impose on.

   They tried to fool him.

   Synonyms:

   gudgeon, dupe, cozen, hoax, gull, cheat, hoodwink, delude

verb (used without object)

fools, present (3rd person singular) fooled, past participle, past fooling present participle

1. to act like a fool; joke; play.

2. to jest; pretend; make believe.

   I was only fooling.

verb phrase

1. fool away to spend foolishly, as time or money; squander.

   to fool away the entire afternoon.

2. fool around (with)

   1. to putter aimlessly; waste time.

      She fooled around all through school.

      I fooled around with painting for a bit, but never got anywhere with it.

   2. Also fool with to handle or play with idly or carelessly.

      She was hurt while fooling around with a loaded gun.

      It's unkind to fool with someone's affections.

   3. to flirt or have casual sexual encounters.

      You should know better than to fool around with someone you work with.

      They're just fooling around–I don't think the relationship is going to go anywhere.

   4. to be sexually promiscuous, especially to engage in adultery.

      He's out fooling around while she's at home sick with the flu.

idioms

1. be nobody's fool, to be wise or shrewd.

fool ² American  

[fool] / ful /

noun

British Cooking.

1. a dish made of fruit, scalded or stewed, crushed and mixed with cream or the like.

   gooseberry fool.

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fool ¹ British  

/ fuːl /

noun

1. a person who lacks sense or judgement

2. a person who is made to appear ridiculous

3. (formerly) a professional jester living in a royal or noble household

4. obsolete an idiot or imbecile

   the village fool

5. to play the fool or behave irritatingly

6. a wise or sensible person

7. to deliberately act foolishly; indulge in buffoonery

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verb

1. (tr) to deceive (someone), esp in order to make him or her look ridiculous

2. informal (intr; foll by with, around with, or about with) to act or play (with) irresponsibly or aimlessly

   to fool around with a woman

3. (intr) to speak or act in a playful, teasing, or jesting manner

4. to squander; fritter

   he fooled away a fortune

5. to move or proceed in a leisurely way

adjective

1. informal short for foolish

fool ² British  

/ fuːl /

noun

1. a dessert made from a purée of fruit with cream or custard

   gooseberry fool

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fool More Idioms  

More idioms and phrases containing fool

• foolish
• make a fool of
• no fool like an old fool
• nobody's fool
• not suffer fools gladly
• play the fool
• take for (a fool)

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• unfooled
  adjective
• unfooling
  adjective
• well-fooled
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Participles

• fooling
  present
• fooled
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• fool
  simple
• fools
  simple
• have fooled
  perfect
• has fooled
  perfect
• am fooling
  progressive
• are fooling
  progressive
• is fooling
  progressive
• have been fooling
  perfect progressive
• has been fooling
  perfect progressive

Past

• fooled
  simple
• had fooled
  perfect
• was fooling
  progressive
• were fooling
  progressive
• had been fooling
  perfect progressive

Future

• will fool
  simple
• will have fooled
  perfect
• will be fooling
  progressive
• will have been fooling
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of fool¹

First recorded in 1225–75; Middle English fol, fool, from Old French fol, from Latin follis “bellows, bag”; cf. follis

Origin of fool²

First recorded in 1590–1600; probably special use of fool ¹; cf. trifle ( def. ) (in the sense “a dessert consisting of custard and cake”

Explanation

In the Middle Ages, a fool was a clown or jester. Today, fools are simply silly people who clown around or lack common sense. The original fools were clowns hired by the king for entertainment. They were actually witty and smart, but today's fools are not. When you call someone a fool, you either mean he's gullible or just a run-of-the-mill idiot. To fool also means to play a trick or hoax on someone, and fooling around is carelessly spending time on something silly. If someone doesn't believe something you said, you might defend yourself by saying, "I'm not fooling!"

Example Sentences

A chatbot can fool an adult anytime but a toddler could spot a fake at 50 paces.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 26, 2026

He added: "If you don't want to serve in a UK Parliament, don't. But don't make a fool of yourself doing so."

From BBC • Jun. 24, 2026

Speaking on Amy Poehler's podcast Good Hang, the 30-year-old actor said he loves SNL and "the idea of having fun and making a fool of yourself in such a creative way".

From BBC • Jun. 3, 2026

“That sounds like you really have the basis for an agreement. … But don’t fool yourself to think that completely addresses the situation.”

From Los Angeles Times • May 23, 2026

“I wouldn’t put anything past those monkeys. They’re the smartest things I’ve ever seen. They sure made a fool out of me.”

From "Summer of the Monkeys" by Wilson Rawls

Related Words

• ass
• boob
• buffoon
• idiot
• jerk
• moron
• nitwit
• stooge
• sucker
• twit