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.

---

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

But in a split second, he remembered jumping over a standing person results in a 15-yard personal foul penalty.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 6, 2026

Clark was called for a personal foul at the 7:57 mark in the fourth quarter after getting tangled up with Bonner, who was trying to post up near the free-throw line.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 23, 2026

Following Metcalf’s TD, Tennessee scored after Seattle cornerback Artie Burns was called for a personal foul for shoving Tennessee’s Mason Kinsey after a play that would have set up a third-and-4.

From Seattle Times ● Dec. 24, 2023

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

Random Word

Spin the wheel and learn a new word!

---