foible

noun

foi·​ble ˈfȯi-bəl 

1

: the part of a sword or foil blade between the middle and point

2

: a minor flaw or shortcoming in character or behavior : weakness

admired their teacher despite his foibles

… talent is always balanced by foible.

—Janna Malamud Smith

Did you know?

Many word lovers agree that the pen is mightier than the sword. But be they honed in wit or form, even the sharpest tools in the shed have their flaws. That’s where foible comes in handy. Borrowed from French in the 1600s, the word originally referred to the weakest part of a fencing sword, that part being the portion between the middle and the pointed tip. The English foible soon came to be applied not only to weaknesses in blades but also to minor failings in character. The French source of foible is also at a remove from the fencing arena; the French foible means "weak," and it comes from the same Old French term, feble, that gave us feeble.

Synonyms

• demerit
• dereliction
• failing
• fault
• frailty
• shortcoming
• sin
• vice
• want
• weakness

Choose the Right Synonym for foible

fault, failing, frailty, foible, vice mean an imperfection or weakness of character.

fault implies a failure, not necessarily culpable, to reach some standard of perfection in disposition, action, or habit.

a writer of many virtues and few faults

failing suggests a minor shortcoming in character.

being late is a failing of mine

frailty implies a general or chronic proneness to yield to temptation.

human frailties

foible applies to a harmless or endearing weakness or idiosyncrasy.

an eccentric's charming foibles

vice can be a general term for any imperfection or weakness, but it often suggests violation of a moral code or the giving of offense to the moral sensibilities of others.

compulsive gambling was his vice

Examples of foible in a Sentence

could tolerate my uncle's foibles because we loved him dearly

Recent Examples on the Web

Observers have suggested physiological reasons for this Jekyll & Hyde variance but there are tactical foibles too. —Carl Anka, The Athletic, 17 Mar. 2025

The ninety-seventh Academy Awards lay at the end of a road filled with scandal and chaos, thanks to the tweets of one Karla Sofía Gascón and other foibles along the way. —Michael Schulman, The New Yorker, 3 Mar. 2025

The vast majority of those foibles belong to Dennis. —David Ehrlich, IndieWire, 24 Jan. 2025

White is simply too gifted a dramatist, and too acute an observer of human foibles, for these concerns to feel forced. —Alison Herman, Variety, 11 Feb. 2025

Word History

Etymology

obsolete French (now faible), from obsolete foible weak, from Old French feble feeble

First Known Use

circa 1648, in the meaning defined at sense 1

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Kids Definition

foible

noun

foi·​ble ˈfȯi-bəl 

: a minor fault in personal character or behavior : weakness