- fool
- I UK [fuːl] / US [ful]
noun
Word forms "fool":
singular fool plural fools
**
1) [countable] someone who does not behave in an intelligent or sensible wayYou're a fool if you think you'll ever see that money again.
feel (like) a fool:How could you be such a stupid fool?
look (like) a fool:I felt such a fool when he used me as an example!
I'm not wearing that; I don't want to look like a fool.
See:2) [countable] a man in the past whose job was to entertain a king, queen, or other important person by making them laugh3) [countable/uncountable] a sweet food made from crushed cooked fruit mixed with cream and served coldgooseberry/rhubarb/raspberry fool
•a fool and his money (are soon parted)
— used for saying that someone who is not sensible spends their money carelesslyfools rush in (where angels fear to tread)
— spoken used for saying that people who are not sensible do things without thinking carefully about what may happen as a resultmake a fool (out) of someone
— to deliberately make someone seem stupid, for example by tricking themI felt that Sally had made a complete fool of me.
(the) more fool you/him/her etc
— spoken used for saying that you think someone is doing something stupidWell, more fool you if you give him any more of your money!
no/nobody's fool
— intelligent and with a lot of experience of life so that you do not allow other people to trick youHer eyes shone with intelligence: she was nobody's fool.
play/act the fool
— to deliberately behave in a silly way that annoys peopleHe just plays the fool, he's definitely not one.
- any fool
II UK [fuːl] / US [ful] verb [transitive]
Word forms "fool":
present tense I/you/we/they fool he/she/it fools present participle fooling past tense fooled past participle fooled
*
to trick someone by making them believe something that is not trueI was completely fooled by her.
fool someone into doing something:The men had even issued false documents to fool the police.
fool yourself:Don't let anyone fool you into handing over large sums of money.
She realized she'd been fooling herself – he didn't really love her at all.
•just/only fooling
— spoken pretending that something is true, as a jokePhrasal verbs:Don't look so worried – I was only fooling.
III UK [fuːl] / US [ful] adjective [only before noun] American informalstupid or sillyWhat's that fool boy done now?
English dictionary. 2014.