foolscap

[ foolz-kap ]

/ ˈfulzˌkæp /

noun

a type of inexpensive writing paper, especially legal-size, lined, yellow sheets, bound in tablet form.

Chiefly British. a size of drawing or printing paper, 13.5 × 17 inches (34 × 43 cm). Abbreviation: cap., fcp.

Also called foolscap octavo. a size of book, about 4.25 × 6.75 inches (11 × 17 cm), untrimmed.

Also called foolscap quarto. Chiefly British. a size of book, about 6.75 × 8.5 inches (17 × 22 cm) untrimmed.

fool's cap(def 1).

Nearby words

Origin of foolscap

First recorded in 1690–1700; so called from the watermark of a fool's cap formerly used on such paper

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for foolscap

Van glanced furtively at his chum who, unconscious of his scrutiny, was writing steadily down a long page of foolscap.
The Story of Sugar|Sara Ware Bassett
He put the note on the foolscap book and laid them on the table.
Lucy Maud Montgomery Short Stories, 1909 to 1922|Lucy Maud Montgomery
The postscript seems to belong to a letter written on the first leaf of the foolscap sheet, which is lost or destroyed.
The Conspiracy of Pontiac and the Indian War after the Conquest of Canada|Francis Parkman
On the voyage he wrote a minute narrative of his diplomatic career, occupying two hundred and fifty pages of foolscap.
Benjamin Franklin, A Picture of the Struggles of Our Infant Nation One Hundred Years Ago|John S. C. Abbott

Put away that great pile of foolscap and talk to me; Im as full of talk as an egg is full of meat.
Tessa Wadsworth's Discipline|Jennie M. Drinkwater

British Dictionary definitions for foolscap

foolscap

/ (ˈfuːlzˌkæp) /

noun

mainly British a size of writing or printing paper, 13 1/2 by 17 inches or 13 1/4 by 16 1/2 inches

a book size, 4 1/4 by 6 3/4 inches (foolscap octavo) or (chiefly Brit) 6 3/4 by 8 1/2 inches (foolscap quarto)

a variant spelling of fool's cap

Word Origin for foolscap

C17: see fool 1, cap; so called from the watermark formerly used on this kind of paper

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for foolscap

foolscap

literally "fool's cap; cap worn by jesters," 1630s; c.1700 as a type of paper, so called because this type of paper originally was watermarked with a court jester's cap.