fool
a person who behaves in a silly way without thinking
He's a fool if he thinks she still loves him.
Oxford Essential Dictionary
noun
a person who is silly or who does something silly:
You fool! You forgot to lock the door!
make a fool of yourself to do something that makes you look silly in front of other people:
He always makes a fool of himself at parties.
Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English
I. fool1 /fuːl/ BrE AmE noun
[Date: 1200-1300; Language: Old French; Origin: fol, from Latin follis 'bag for blowing air']
1. STUPID PERSON [countable] a stupid person or someone who has done something stupid SYN idiot:
What a fool she had been to think that he would stay.
Like a fool, I accepted straight away.
You silly old fool!
2. make a fool of yourself to do something stupid that you feel embarrassed about afterwards and that makes you seem silly:
Sorry I made such a fool of myself last night. I must have been drunk.
3. make a fool of somebody to deliberately do something to make someone else seem stupid:
I suddenly realised that I was being made a fool of.
4. any fool can do something spoken used to say that it is very easy to do something or to see that something is true:
Any fool could have seen what would happen.
5. be no/nobody’s fool to be difficult to trick or deceive, because you have a lot of experience and knowledge about something:
Katherine was nobody’s fool when it came to money.
6. gooseberry/strawberry etc fool British English a sweet food made of soft cooked fruit mixed with cream
7. more fool you/him etc British English spoken used to say that you think someone was stupid to do something, and it is their own fault if this causes trouble:
‘Jim smashed up my car.’ ‘More fool you for letting him borrow it!’
8. not suffer fools gladly if you say that someone doesn’t suffer fools gladly, they do not have any patience with people who they think are stupid
9. be living in a fool’s paradise to feel happy and satisfied, and believe there are no problems, when in fact this is not true
10. play/act the fool to behave in a silly way, especially in order to make people laugh:
Stop playing the fool! You’ll fall.
11. (send somebody on) a fool’s errand to make someone go somewhere or do something for no good reason
12. fools rush in (where angels fear to tread) used to say that people are stupid if they do something immediately without thinking about it first
13. a fool and his money are soon parted used to say that stupid people spend money quickly without thinking about it
14. ENTERTAINER [countable] a man whose job was to entertain a king or other powerful people in the past, by doing tricks, singing funny songs etc SYN jester
⇨ ↑April fool
Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary
fool [fool fools fooled fooling] noun, verb, adjective [fuːl] [fuːl]
noun
1. countable a person who you think behaves or speaks in a way that lacks intelligence or good judgement
Syn: idiot
• Don't be such a fool!
• I felt a fool when I realized my mistake.
• He told me he was an actor and I was fool enough to believe him.
2. countable (in the past) a man employed by a king or queen to entertain people by telling jokes, singing songs, etc.
Syn: jester
3. uncountable, countable (BrE) (usually in compounds) a cold light dessert (= a sweet dish) made from fruit that is cooked and crushed and mixed with cream or custard
• rhubarb fool
more at not suffer fools gladly at suffer
Word Origin:
n. senses 1 to 2 and v. adj. Middle English Old French fol ‘fool, foolish’ Latin follis ‘bellows, windbag’ ‘empty-headed person’
n. sense 3 late 16th cent. fool ‘foolish’
Thesaurus:
fool noun C (sometimes offensive)
• Don't be such a fool!
sometimes offensive idiot • |BrE, informal, sometimes offensive prat • |especially AmE, informal, sometimes offensive dork • |offensive moron • |especially AmE, informal, offensive jerk •
a complete fool/idiot/prat/dork/moron/jerk
feel/look like a/an fool/idiot/prat/dork/moron/jerk
make a fool/idiot/prat/dork of yourself
Synonyms:
cheat
fool • deceive • betray • take in • trick • con
These words all mean to make sb believe sth that is not true, especially in order to get what you want.
cheat • to make sb believe sth that is not true, in order to get money or sth else from them: ▪ She is accused of attempting to cheat the taxman. ◊ ▪ He cheated his way into the job.
Cheat also means to act in a dishonest way in order to gain an advantage, especially in a game, competition or exam: ▪ You're not allowed to look at the answers— ▪ that's cheating ▪.
fool • to make sb believe sth that is not true, especially in order to laugh at them or to get what you want: ▪ Just don't be fooled into investing any money with them.
deceive • to make sb believe sth that is not true, especially sb who trusts you, in order to get what you want: ▪ She deceived him into handing over all his savings.
betray • to hurt sb who trusts you, especially by deceiving them or not being loyal to them: ▪ She felt betrayed when she found out the truth about him.
take sb in • [often passive] to deceive sb, usually in order to get what you want: ▪ I was taken in by her story.
trick • to deceive sb, especially in a clever way, in order to get what you want.
con • (informal) to deceive sb, especially in order to get money from them or get them to do sth for you: ▪ They had been conned out of £100 000.
which word?
Many of these words involve making sb believe sth that is not true, but some of them are more disapproving than others. Deceive is probably the worst because people typically deceive friends, relations and others who know and trust them. People may feel cheated/betrayed by sb in authority who they trusted to look after their interests. If sb takes you in, they may do it by acting a part and using words and charm effectively. If sb cheats/fools/tricks/cons you, they may get sth from you and make you feel stupid. However, sb might fool you just as a joke; and to trick sb is sometimes seen as a clever thing to do, if the person being tricked is seen as a bad person who deserves it.
to cheat/fool/trick/con sb out of sth
to cheat/fool/deceive/betray/trick/con sb into doing sth
to feel cheated/fooled/deceived/betrayed/tricked/conned
to fool/deceive yourself
to cheat/trick/con your way into sth
Example Bank:
• He thought that being an actor only involved tap dancing and playing the fool.
• I felt like a fool when I realized what I'd done.
• I thought it was safe to leave my suitcase there. More fool me.
• Like a fool, I told her everything.
• She doesn't suffer fools gladly.
• She was angry at having been made a fool of.
• She's nobody's fool. She had the car checked by a mechanic before buying it.
• Stop acting the fool and be serious!
• Stop behaving like a fool!
• That fool of a doctor has prescribed me the wrong medicine!
• The poor old fool was imprisoned on my account.
• They had left me looking like a fool.
• You silly little fool!
• You're an even bigger fool than I thought.
• court fools who used to provide entertainment in the royal court
• Don't be such a fool!
• I made a complete fool of myself in front of everyone.
• You must take me for a fool!
Idioms: act the fool ▪ any fool can ▪ fool and his money are soon parted ▪ fools rush in ▪ make a fool of somebody ▪ make a fool of yourself ▪ more fool somebody ▪ no fool ▪ no fool like an old fool ▪ you could have fooled me
Derived: fool around
Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary
fool / fuːl / noun (PERSON)
B1 [ C ] a person who behaves in a silly way without thinking:
[ as form of address ] You fool, you've missed your chance!
He's a fool if he thinks she still loves him.
[ + to infinitive ] He's a fool to think she still loves him.
He's fool enough to think she still loves him.
My fool of a (= silly) husband has gone out and taken my keys!
[ C ] in the past, a person who was employed in the court of a king or queen to make them laugh by telling jokes and doing funny things act/play the fool to behave in a silly way, often intentionally to make people laugh:
Stop acting the fool, I'm trying to talk to you.
any fool anyone:
Any fool could tell that she was joking.
make a fool of sb
B2 to trick someone or make them appear stupid in some way
make a fool of yourself B2 to do something that makes other people think you are silly or not to be respected:
I got a bit drunk and made a fool of myself.
more fool sb mainly UK said to mean that you think someone is being unwise:
"I lent Rhoda $100 and she hasn't paid me back." "More fool you - you know what she's like!"
be no fool ( also be nobody's fool ) to not be stupid or easily deceived:
I notice Ed didn't offer to pay for her - he's no fool.
fool / fuːl / noun [ C or U ] (SWEET DISH)
a sweet, soft food made of crushed fruit, cream, and sugar:
gooseberry fool
Collins COBUILD Advanced Learner’s English Dictionary
fool
[fu͟ːl]
fools, fooling, fooled
1) N-COUNT (disapproval) If you call someone a fool, you are indicating that you think they are not at all sensible and show a lack of good judgement.
`You fool!' she shouted...
He'd been a fool to get involved with her!
Syn:
idiot
2) ADJ: ADJ n (disapproval) Fool is used to describe an action or person that is not at all sensible and shows a lack of good judgement. [mainly AM, INFORMAL]
What a damn fool thing to do!...
What can that fool guard be thinking of?
3) VERB If someone fools you, they deceive or trick you.
[V n] Art dealers fool a lot of people...
[V n] Don't be fooled by his appearance...
[V n into -ing] They tried to fool you into coming after us.
Syn:
trick, con
4) VERB If you say that a person is fooling with something or someone, you mean that the way they are behaving is likely to cause problems.
[V with n] What are you doing fooling with such a staggering sum of money?...
[V with n] He kept telling her that here you did not fool with officials.
5) N-COUNT: usu the N In the courts of kings and queens in medieval Europe, the fool was the person whose job was to do silly things in order to make people laugh.
Syn:
jester
6) N-VAR Fool is a dessert made by mixing soft cooked fruit with whipped cream or with custard. [BRIT]
...gooseberry fool.
7) PHRASE: V and N inflect If you make a fool of someone, you make them seem silly by telling people about something stupid that they have done, or by tricking them.
Your brother is making a fool of you...
He'd been made a fool of.
8) PHRASE: V and N inflect If you make a fool of yourself, you behave in a way that makes other people think that you are silly or lacking in good judgement.
He was drinking and making a fool of himself.
9) PHRASE (disapproval) If you say to someone `More fool you' when they tell you what they have done or what they plan to do, you are indicating that you think that it is silly and shows a lack of judgement. [BRIT]
Most managers couldn't care less about information technology. More fool them.
10) PHRASE: V inflects If you play the fool or act the fool, you behave in a playful, childish, and foolish way, usually in order to make other people laugh.
They used to play the fool together, calling each other silly names and giggling.
Syn:
mess about
11) to suffer fools gladly → see suffer
Phrasal Verbs:
- fool about
- fool around
Merriam-Webster's Advanced Learner's Dictionary
1fool /ˈfuːl/ noun, pl fools [count]
1 : a person who lacks good sense or judgment : a stupid or silly person
• those fools who ride motorcycles without wearing helmets
• Only a fool would ask such a silly question.
• You'd be a fool to believe what he tells you.
• You're making yourself look like a fool.
• A fool and his money are soon parted. [=a foolish person spends money too quickly on unimportant things]
• Any fool can see [=anyone can see] that he's lying.
• I never thought you'd be fool enough to believe him. = I never thought you'd be enough of a fool to believe him.
• (informal) Only that fool of a brother [=that foolish brother] of yours would ask such a silly question!
• (informal) Some (damn/damned) fool of a driver kept trying to pass me!
• Fools rush in (where angels fear to tread). [=it is foolish to take action if you do not know much about what you are doing]
• (Brit, informal) (The) more fool you if you believe him. = (The) more fool you for believing him. [=you would be a fool to believe him]
• (Brit, informal) More fool him for trusting her.
• There's no fool like an old fool. [=a foolish old person is especially foolish because an old person should have learned from experience not to make the kind of mistakes a young person makes]
✦A smart or clever person can be described as no fool or as nobody's fool.
• He may not look very smart, but he's no fool.
• Don't try to trick her—she's nobody's fool.
2 US informal : a person who enjoys something very much
• He's a dancing fool. [=he loves to dance]
• He's a fool for candy. [=he loves to eat candy]
3 chiefly Brit : a dessert made with cooked fruit and cream or a thick sauce
• a strawberry fool
4 : jester
act/play the fool : to behave in a silly or foolish way
• If you keep playing the fool by asking silly questions, people won't take you seriously.
make a fool of yourself : to behave in a very foolish or silly way
• He got drunk at the party and made a fool of himself.
• He's making a fool of himself over that woman.
make a fool (out) of : to cause (someone) to look stupid or foolish
• She made a fool of me by insulting me in front of my friends.
- see also april fools' day
