1
as in to horse around
to engage in attention-getting playful or boisterous behavior
quit fooling around on the jungle gym, or you'll get hurt
Synonyms & Similar Words
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2
as in to play
to spend time in aimless activity
we fooled around outdoors for a while, then went in to get some work done
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of fool around
Oklahoma fooled around with Houston long enough to escape with a narrow 16-12 win.
—
Chase Goodbread, The Tennessean, 18 Sep. 2024
While the siblings have the habit of getting into troubles and to only use their creative skills to fool around, Michael sees in them a real talent.
—Maelle Beauget-Uhl, Forbes, 5 Dec. 2024
Why fool around with a convention that everyone understood and practiced?
—Judith Martin, The Mercury News, 7 Oct. 2024
Flashbacks peppered throughout the first several episodes reveal that Yasmin caught her father fooling around with a pregnant woman on the boat.
—Eliana Dockterman, TIME, 16 Sep. 2024
See All Example Sentences for fool around
Chase Goodbread, The Tennessean, 18 Sep. 2024
While the siblings have the habit of getting into troubles and to only use their creative skills to fool around, Michael sees in them a real talent.
—Maelle Beauget-Uhl, Forbes, 5 Dec. 2024
Why fool around with a convention that everyone understood and practiced?
—Judith Martin, The Mercury News, 7 Oct. 2024
Flashbacks peppered throughout the first several episodes reveal that Yasmin caught her father fooling around with a pregnant woman on the boat.
—Eliana Dockterman, TIME, 16 Sep. 2024
See All Example Sentences for fool around
Recent Examples of Synonyms for fool around
Verb
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Elsewhere, two boys, Frank and Alain, get up to assorted mischief, sneaking onto a baseball diamond at night or horsing around on railroad tracks, although there are hints that Frank’s family may leave Cuba soon.—
Ben Kenigsberg,
New York Times,
9 Jan. 2025
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In the video, Payne is shown horsing around with a large outdoor crowd and his bandmates, encouraging the fans to quiet their screaming and then raise the volume all the way back up.—
Clare Mulroy,
USA TODAY,
3 Feb. 2025
Verb
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Jericho Rosales plays Quezon, and the cast also includes Mon Confiado, Benjamin Alves, Karylle Yuzon, Romnick Sarmenta, J.C. Santos and Cris Villanueva.—
Naman Ramachandran,
Variety,
17 Mar. 2025
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Others lament that young people will lose the chance to build up fluid mental math skills while playing: develop number sense, compute sums and products, budget, compare value, think strategically or reason using simple probability.—
Ann Rutledge,
Forbes,
17 Mar. 2025
Verb
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The short reel shows users how to cut up and tape together cardboard pieces to create a little homemade tool that helps toddlers learn how to fold shirts.—
Adrianna Rodriguez,
USA TODAY,
10 Mar. 2025
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This tincture spray — made by soaking cut up avocado pits in 91 percent rubbing alcohol overnight — can help with just about any type of pain, one TikTok user claims in a video that has racked up millions of views.—
Tom Gavin,
EverydayHealth.com,
24 Feb. 2025
Verb
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On Wednesday, March 12, the Real Housewives of Beverly Hills alum, 43, posted an Instagram photo showing off her blonde wig, as well as her natural dark hair shaved.—
Charna Flam,
People.com,
14 Mar. 2025
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Nintendo will show off more about the Switch’s software on April 2.—
Paul Tassi,
Forbes,
14 Mar. 2025
Verb
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Battle League launched a little bit light on content, with only a few stadiums to mess around with, simplified gameplay compared to past games in the series, and a small selection of characters.—
William Lambers,
Newsweek,
10 Mar. 2025
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In other words, let your ad creatives do the work of targeting for you rather than messing around with audience filters.—
Renae Gregoire,
Forbes,
27 Feb. 2025
Verb
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Most asteroids hang about in the Mars to Jupiter region, and the ones near Earth obviously hang about a bit closer.—
Dana Taylor,
USA TODAY,
2 Oct. 2024
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The big picture: The nine-block shopping district got its own Art Deco-style sign on Monday, which now hangs about 25 feet in the air over Cary Street by Burtons Grill & Bar.—
Sabrina Moreno,
Axios,
1 Oct. 2024
Verb
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Her pain can act up suddenly and seemingly comes without rhyme or reason.—
Matthew Futterman,
The Athletic,
7 Mar. 2025
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The hourlong descent appeared to go well until the final approach when the laser navigation system began acting up.—
Marcia Dunn,
Los Angeles Times,
6 Mar. 2025
Verb
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After breakfast, Rick and Amrita bid each other fond adieu, but that man is still kicking around Samui.—
Amanda Whiting,
Vulture,
9 Mar. 2025
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So it’s been kicking around in his imagination for many, many years.—
Lynette Rice,
Deadline,
26 Feb. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Fool around.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/fool%20around. Accessed 23 Mar. 2025.
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