1
as in stupid
showing or marked by a lack of good sense or judgment
foolish people who thought that the world would end in the year 2000 a foolish scheme that was supposed to make us all rich
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2
as in absurd
conceived or made without regard for reason or reality
foolish attempts to construct a perpetual motion machine
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3
as in small
lacking importance
the current regulations are cluttered with foolish details that are unnecessarily burdensome
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of foolish
The notion that women should be flawless multitaskers, managing a perfect home and career while never showing vulnerability or weakness is not only unrealistic, but also foolish.
—
Nicole Lipkin, Forbes, 25 Feb. 2025
These seem like foolish decisions to me when looking at the camera from a practical, pragmatic point of view.
—Jim Fisher, PCMAG, 24 Feb. 2025
In 2019, a partial government shutdown left a skeleton crew of workers in Joshua Tree, vandals and foolish guests caused destruction in the park that experts expect to take centuries to regrow.
—Andrew Keatts, Axios, 24 Feb. 2025
Miami would be foolish to hold onto him as the team still looks to be multiple years away from contending for a postseason berth.
—Mark Joseph, Newsweek, 23 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for foolish
Nicole Lipkin, Forbes, 25 Feb. 2025
These seem like foolish decisions to me when looking at the camera from a practical, pragmatic point of view.
—Jim Fisher, PCMAG, 24 Feb. 2025
In 2019, a partial government shutdown left a skeleton crew of workers in Joshua Tree, vandals and foolish guests caused destruction in the park that experts expect to take centuries to regrow.
—Andrew Keatts, Axios, 24 Feb. 2025
Miami would be foolish to hold onto him as the team still looks to be multiple years away from contending for a postseason berth.
—Mark Joseph, Newsweek, 23 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for foolish
Recent Examples of Synonyms for foolish
Adjective
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When Luca pulls a gun on him, ordering him to drive, Spencer quickly disarms him and then slaps him for the stupid move.—
Kimberly Roots,
TVLine,
9 Mar. 2025
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Indexing gives you a better chance to ‘be less stupid.’ — Investment advisor Barry Ritholtz Those dismal statistics come to us via the latest annual SPIVA scorecard (the acronym stands for Standard and Poor’s Index vs. Active).—
Michael Hiltzik,
Los Angeles Times,
6 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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Undermining tax collections and the IRS goes hand in glove with Trump’s absurd belief that the U.S. federal government can or should try to fund itself primarily via tariffs.—
New York Daily News,
Twin Cities,
16 Mar. 2025
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The more absurd or humorous examples, like the animation of Irving that plays at his funeral, can also be disconcerting.—
Abigail Lee,
Variety,
15 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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In early December, Roberts returned to the place of his birth, traveling to the Japanese city of Naha on the small Pacific island of Okinawa to receive an official recognition from the municipality’s local government.—
Houston Mitchell,
Los Angeles Times,
14 Mar. 2025
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Sitting in his idling pickup one afternoon, Sherlock watched as a Canadian Pacific train rumbled by the grain elevator in the small town of Wimbledon.—
Kirk Siegler,
NPR,
14 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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Finally, its focus on physics means that things get silly pretty quickly, which makes for very shareable moments and clips.—
David Faris,
Newsweek,
17 Mar. 2025
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Dozen Bakery off Nolensville Pike is celebrating this silliest of holidays with special pies and quiche.—
Adam Tamburin,
Axios,
14 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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The esoteric will never sit completely comfortably in the mainstream, because that’s the point of it: to be unusual, bizarre, absurd.—
Eliza Goodpasture,
ARTnews.com,
18 Mar. 2025
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So many of the characters on this show speak with such bizarre, precise dialogue that can only make sense in the Severance world.—
Josh Wigler,
The Hollywood Reporter,
17 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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The researchers say that while the brain activity associated with these movements largely remained the same over time, their location within the brain could shift slightly from day to day — and this is why AI, which can automatically adjust for these minor changes — proved key.—
Toria Sheffield,
People.com,
16 Mar. 2025
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Proper treatment can help the liver heal from minor damage, including fibrosis.—
Sarah Hudgens,
Health,
16 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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In one particularly horrifying incident, one family of herders lost over 40 of their stock, a fact that would contribute to the death of one child, which then caused the father to go mad and be sent to prison.—
Harrison Richlin,
IndieWire,
13 Mar. 2025
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Then Sterling did some less effective things and got suspended anyway, so that mad idea was, at least, parked for the time being.—
Amy Lawrence,
The Athletic,
13 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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Your voice is insane.—
Mary Colurso | mcolurso@al.com,
al,
4 Apr. 2023
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But obviously winning the grand jury prize was insane.—
Taylor Antrim,
Vogue,
31 Mar. 2023
Articles Related to foolish
Cite this Entry
“Foolish.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/foolish. Accessed 24 Mar. 2025.
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