1
as in insanity
a foolish act or idea
the American purchase of Alaska was originally considered a grand folly
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2
as in madness
lack of good sense or judgment
in all my folly, I didn't think about how my actions would hurt my father
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3
as in nonsense
language, behavior, or ideas that are absurd and contrary to good sense
enough of this folly about moving to the Australian outback
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Examples Sentences
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Recent Examples of folly
Going the quantitative route ended up providing interesting folly but did not nail down the answer.
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Lance Eliot, Forbes, 22 Oct. 2024
What the 49ers did to the Eagles that day underscores the folly making too big a deal out of a game when there is so much of the season left to be played.
—Jerry McDonald, The Mercury News, 18 Oct. 2024
Harris’s proposal shows the folly of conflating ‘democratic norms’ with the political success of the Democratic Party.
—Fred Bauer, National Review, 30 Sep. 2024
As the stranger suffers from the clash of two crucially different views of reality, the report becomes an indictment and a record of human folly with political undertones.
—Jeff Vandermeer, The Atlantic, 27 Sep. 2024
See all Example Sentences for folly 
Lance Eliot, Forbes, 22 Oct. 2024
What the 49ers did to the Eagles that day underscores the folly making too big a deal out of a game when there is so much of the season left to be played.
—Jerry McDonald, The Mercury News, 18 Oct. 2024
Harris’s proposal shows the folly of conflating ‘democratic norms’ with the political success of the Democratic Party.
—Fred Bauer, National Review, 30 Sep. 2024
As the stranger suffers from the clash of two crucially different views of reality, the report becomes an indictment and a record of human folly with political undertones.
—Jeff Vandermeer, The Atlantic, 27 Sep. 2024
See all Example Sentences for folly
Recent Examples of Synonyms for folly
Noun
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Gein was found guilty of first-degree murder; in a separate trial to determine his mental competence, he was found not guilty by reason of insanity.Declan Gallagher and Chris Bellamy, EW.com, 31 Oct. 2024
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Postpartum mental illnesses can be insidious and take many different forms, but the prosecution’s depiction of Lindsay challenged the stereotypical assumptions about insanity that had seemingly informed the public’s initial sympathy.Eren Orbey, The New Yorker, 14 Oct. 2024
Noun
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But Melina always fascinated Lila — the authenticity of madness, untethered from the social mores that dominated their environment, made sense for Lila.Rafaela Bassili, Vulture, 4 Nov. 2024
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Schedule madness Schools will play 18 conference games.Beth Harris, Chicago Tribune, 2 Nov. 2024
Noun
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Already in Shasta County, a hotbed of far-right nonsense, these watchers have videotaped, followed and harassed county workers so much that 10 of 21 workers in the elections office have quit, according to CalMatters.Anita Chabria, Los Angeles Times, 5 Nov. 2024
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But it's commingled with misinformation, conjecture and nonsense.Mike Allen, Axios, 5 Nov. 2024
Noun
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On the floor above a woman sweeps the floor, an act of absurdity that doubles as bravery, the whole scene a desperate attempt at normalcy in a world that has become anything but.Bill Goodykoontz, The Arizona Republic, 5 Nov. 2024
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Accentuating the absurdity of the gold rush, one of the screenwriters of Mezrich’s project, Lauren Schuker Blum, was competing with her husband, the producer Jason Blum, who was racing to get HBO’s project developed.Simon van Zuylen-Wood, Vulture, 1 Nov. 2024
Noun
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The production’s simplicity ditched the cliches that have accumulated around the play over decades.Charles McNulty, Los Angeles Times, 4 Nov. 2024
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Raines believes that simplicity also applies to his politics.Terry Collins, USA TODAY, 4 Nov. 2024
Noun
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But in Judge’s intentionally crass lament (which somehow becomes more prescient and troublesome by the day), our rampant national boorishness and stupidity was sort of the point.Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 15 Aug. 2024
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The problem lies in the stupidity of the is original spec.Charlie Fink, Forbes, 24 Oct. 2024
Noun
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Then after Tyla won Best International Artist, Henson ran through the calendar to recap a year in foolishness.Bethy Squires, Vulture, 30 June 2024
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On an international level, too..., one country’s climate response can easily leave another country impoverished, either through neglect, foolishness or outright malevolence.Saima S. Iqbal, Scientific American, 24 Oct. 2024
Noun
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Refrigerate overnight and then top with honey or maple syrup, fresh fruit, chocolate chips, coconut flakes or nuts.Lauryn Higgins, Parents, 2 Oct. 2024
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Specifically, there's an amino acid in nuts and meat called L-arginine that becomes converted to nitric oxide in the body, which can increase blood flow.Daryl Austin, USA TODAY, 2 Oct. 2024
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Cite this Entry
“Folly.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/folly. Accessed 21 Nov. 2024.
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