Synonyms

make a fool of

Idioms

Also,. Cause someone or oneself to look foolish or stupid. For example, John doesn't mind making a fool of himself at parties, or They made an ass of me by giving me the wrong instructions, or Just watch him make a monkey out of this amateur chess player. The use of fool and ass date from the early 1600s; the latter is sometimes put more rudely as make a horse's ass of, alluding to a horse's behind. The use of monkey dates from about 1900.

Example Sentences

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make a fool of

“It didn’t matter to him. It broke my heart, and I told myself ‘you’re not going to get away with this, you’re not going to make a fool of your own people.’”

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 29, 2026

She added: "Please don't try and vote if you're watching on demand, you'll just make a fool of yourself."

From BBC ● Dec. 15, 2024

Also, a way to make a fool of himself for no reason at all.

From Salon ● Dec. 14, 2023

“But he was also an actor who was willing to go to a place where he wasn’t afraid to make a fool of himself. He wasn’t wrapped up in being this supercool, emotionless, good-looking dude.”

From New York Times ● Jul. 1, 2022

But I figured I had as much right to make a fool of myself as he did.

From "Dragonwings" by Laurence Yep

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

make a fool of

Example Sentences

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