personal foul

American  

noun

Sports.

• personal fouls
  plural

1. a foul called in certain games, as basketball or football, for illegal body contact or rough, unsportsmanlike play.

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• personal fouls
  plural

Etymology

Origin of personal foul

First recorded in 1820–30

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

personal foul

Notre Dame lost its standout nose tackle, Chris Colon, for next week’s game after being ejected for two 15-yard personal foul penalties.

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 8, 2025

There were numerous 15-yard personal foul penalties for taunting, late hits, grabbing the face mask and a horse collar.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 23, 2025

The unnecessary roughness penalty was the third personal foul on Greenlaw this season and his ejection was his second in the past two years.

From Washington Times ● Dec. 9, 2023

Mahomes had a 10-yard run and got hit by Jonathan Owens while going out of bounds, leading to a personal foul that put the ball at Green Bay’s 45.

From Seattle Times ● Dec. 3, 2023

“It didn’t look like a personal foul to me,” Dickert said.

From Seattle Times ● Nov. 25, 2023