1
as in lunatic
a person who lacks good sense or judgment
only a fool would attempt to climb that mountain unprepared
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in clown
a person formerly kept in a royal or noble household to amuse with jests and pranks
a king's fool could get away with saying things that others in the palace couldn't
Synonyms & Similar Words
3
as in sucker
a person with a strong and habitual liking for something
I'm a fool for ice cream
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
4
as in psychopath
a person having or showing a severely disordered or abnormal state of mind
he got out of serving in the army by successfully pretending to be a fool
Synonyms & Similar Words
as in foolish
showing or marked by a lack of good sense or judgment
he's always got some fool plan or other
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in to deceive
to cause to believe what is untrue
I fooled him into thinking that we were driving to the store, not to his surprise birthday party
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to joke
to make jokes
an edgy comedian fooling with an appreciative college audience
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of fool
Michael B. Teiger, Hartford Courant, 21 Jan. 2025
Before the show was over, a Black pastor from Detroit named Lorenzo Sewell approached the podium and made a damn fool of himself.
—Vinson Cunningham, The New Yorker, 20 Jan. 2025
Sun Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 10 Jan. 2025
Although the name might conjure a place that's a little rough around the edges, don't be fooled—the food at Stinky's is top notch, and the live music is not to be missed.
—Kaitlyn Yarborough, Southern Living, 9 Jan. 2025
See all Example Sentences for fool 
Noun
Betting against science and against the experts and following fools is a loser’s pathway.
—Michael B. Teiger, Hartford Courant, 21 Jan. 2025
Before the show was over, a Black pastor from Detroit named Lorenzo Sewell approached the podium and made a damn fool of himself.
—Vinson Cunningham, The New Yorker, 20 Jan. 2025
Verb
JoAnn Lee Frank, Clearwater The chill is temporary Don’t be fooled: Our South Florida cold fronts don’t mean that global warming is not still a looming and deadly problem.
—Sun Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 10 Jan. 2025
Although the name might conjure a place that's a little rough around the edges, don't be fooled—the food at Stinky's is top notch, and the live music is not to be missed.
—Kaitlyn Yarborough, Southern Living, 9 Jan. 2025
See all Example Sentences for fool
Recent Examples of Synonyms for fool
Noun
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While the aforementioned gamer creep threatens to rob us of silly confrontational television, there’s been one thing stopping them and making season three entertaining: The Traitors picked this season are dysfunctional clowns.—
Alex Abad-Santos,
Vox,
6 Feb. 2025
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There was a good joke buried in that conceit: maybe only clowns spend as much time in the makeup chair as the drag artists that have provided Roan the inspiration for her primary look.—
Chris Willman,
Variety,
3 Feb. 2025
Noun
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More great reads Column: Super Bowl sucker no more.—
Andrew J. Campa,
Los Angeles Times,
9 Feb. 2025
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Another place where suckers may pop up is below the bud union on the tree, where the citrus variety was grafted onto the rootstock.—
Leanne Potts,
Better Homes & Gardens,
8 Feb. 2025
Adjective
-
The bottom line: try not to be weather wise, climate foolish.—
Renee Winick,
Twin Cities,
7 Feb. 2025
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Trump's plan for redevelopment of Gaza Strip is both foolish and unworkable, not a great combination.—
Baltimore Sun Editorial Board,
Baltimore Sun,
7 Feb. 2025
Verb
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Minor leaguers and players trying to make the club out of spring can put up gaudy (deceiving) numbers against dubious competition.—
Kevin Acee,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
11 Feb. 2025
-
The viewer may feel deceived for a moment, but most people know that trash talk is par for the course among sports fandoms.—
Emily Forlini,
PCMAG,
10 Feb. 2025
Verb
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Lear believed that a society capable of joking about its problems and prejudices was a society capable of overcoming them.—
Judy Berman,
TIME,
6 Feb. 2025
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Medina’s brother figured, like the 10 times or so in the past, that Medina was joking and the gun wasn’t loaded.—
David J. Neal,
Miami Herald,
6 Feb. 2025
Noun
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But this harlequin moll can’t match Joker’s lunacy as either lawbreaker or musician.—
Armond White,
National Review,
29 Nov. 2024
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The doll, which is called the Witch Weaver, wears flared bell-bottoms, a gossamer harlequin blouse, gold waistcoat and crystal headpiece — taking inspiration from Reed’s signature design codes, personal style and even Lady Gaga.—
Violet Goldstone,
WWD,
21 Nov. 2024
Noun
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The film has become an event, a must-see for movie lovers.—
Glenn Whipp,
Los Angeles Times,
7 Feb. 2025
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Baldoni specifically alleged that Lively used her friendship with Swift to put pressure on him to comply with Lively’s re-write of a crucial scene in the domestic violence drama in which Lively and Baldoni play lovers.—
Martha Ross,
The Mercury News,
6 Feb. 2025
Noun
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How did the character of Joel—who is not a straightforward psychopath, if there is such a thing—come to you?—
Deborah Treisman,
The New Yorker,
26 Jan. 2025
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As 40,000 acres burn, animals are incinerated alive and the human death toll rises, only a psychopath would look for advantage.—
Sabrina Haake,
Chicago Tribune,
18 Jan. 2025
Thesaurus Entries Near fool
Cite this Entry
“Fool.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/fool. Accessed 21 Feb. 2025.
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