foil

1 of 5

verb (1)

foiled; foiling; foils

transitive verb

1
a
: to prevent from attaining an end : defeat
always able to foil her enemies
Her accident foiled her from becoming a dancer.
b
: to bring to naught : thwart
foiled the plot
Police foiled an attempted robbery.
2
obsolete : trample

foil

2 of 5

noun (1)

1
: very thin sheet metal
aluminum foil
2
: a thin piece of material (such as metal) put under an inferior or paste stone to add color or brilliance
3
: someone or something that serves as a contrast to another
acted as a foil for a comedian
4
a
: an indentation between cusps in Gothic tracery
b
: one of several arcs that enclose a complex figure
5

foil

3 of 5

verb (2)

foiled; foiling; foils

transitive verb

1
: to back or cover with foil
2
: to enhance by contrast

foil

4 of 5

noun (2)

1
: a light fencing sword having a usually circular guard and a flexible blade of rectangular section tapering to a blunted point compare épée, saber
2
: the art or sport of fencing with the foil
often used in plural

foil

5 of 5

noun (3)

1
archaic : defeat
2
archaic : the track or trail of an animal
Choose the Right Synonym for foil

frustrate, thwart, foil, baffle, balk mean to check or defeat another's plan or block achievement of a goal.

frustrate implies making vain or ineffectual all efforts however vigorous or persistent.

frustrated attempts at government reform

thwart suggests frustration or checking by crossing or opposing.

the army thwarted his attempt at a coup

foil implies checking or defeating so as to discourage further effort.

foiled by her parents, he stopped trying to see her

baffle implies frustration by confusing or puzzling.

baffled by the maze of rules and regulations

balk suggests the interposing of obstacles or hindrances.

officials felt that legal restrictions had balked their efforts to control crime

Examples of foil in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Verb
The delay came days after NASA's joint effort with private companies to put a U.S. lander on the moon failed after the launch of Peregrine Mission 1 was foiled by a fuel leak on Monday. USA TODAY, 10 Jan. 2024 But my plan was foiled when the hotel emailed me its activities schedule one week prior to my departure. Jen Murphy, Condé Nast Traveler, 29 Feb. 2024 The first attempt was foiled by the 1929 stock-market crash; the second, in the ’80s, faced protests from famous residents, including Plimpton and FitzGerald. Adriane Quinlan, Curbed, 6 Feb. 2024 Russian authorities claimed to have foiled dozens of Ukrainian drone and missile attacks since the new year. Joseph Ataman, CNN, 31 Jan. 2024 Trend Micro Maximum Security takes the concept further, with the option to remotely seal the vault, foiling even a thief who stole your laptop and your vault password. PCMAG, 22 Jan. 2024 So Miller and Edwards set out for his residence, only for Mother Nature to foil them once more. USA TODAY, 18 Jan. 2024 The two worked together for five years, but the mysterious releasing factors foiled their best efforts. Nicholas Wade, New York Times, 22 Feb. 2024 After Delta Flight Lands At Logan Airport The U.S. Customs and Border Protection foiled an attempt to smuggle four dead and dehydrated monkeys at Logan Airport in January. Marisa Garcia, Forbes, 18 Feb. 2024
Noun
Doctors were forced to work by candlelight and wrap premature babies in foil to keep them alive. Abeer Salman, CNN, 21 Mar. 2024 Cover loosely with plastic wrap or foil and chill for at least 8 hours or up to 3 days. Melissa Clark, San Diego Union-Tribune, 20 Mar. 2024 Remove the brisket to a plate and cover with foil to keep warm. Susan Selasky, Detroit Free Press, 15 Mar. 2024 Sanam is a slick foil for Ariel (Kjerstine Rose Anderson), who has a more personal motivation to publish, an impetus that borders on survival for her and her small child. David John Chávez, The Mercury News, 13 Mar. 2024 The foils, stem, and board can all be disassembled to make transit simpler. Boone Ashworth, WIRED, 25 Feb. 2024 Still, Schiff presented as the most forceful foil of Trump — who regularly called Schiff out at rallies and insulted him on social media. Benjamin Oreskes, Los Angeles Times, 7 Mar. 2024 Spike Einbinder’s horrible roommate and James Scully’s upper-crust underminer are easily recognizable foils. David Fear, Rolling Stone, 1 Mar. 2024 When stopped the suspect had a 9mm handgun, marijuana, a crystal substance suspected to be methamphetamine and some gray rock wrapped in foil and suspected to be heroin — all inside of her bra, police said. The Indianapolis Star, 28 Feb. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'foil.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Verb (1)

Middle English foilen "to trample, tread upon, mortify (the flesh), oppress," alteration of fullen "to full (cloth), trample down, oppress," perhaps by analogy with loanwords from French with palatal l that result in variants with -oi- and -u-, as coilen, cullen "to select for quality, pick out, cull entry 1" — more at full entry 5

Noun (1)

Middle English, leaf, from Anglo-French fuille, foille (from Latin folia, plural of folium) & fuil, from Latin folium — more at blade

Noun (2)

origin unknown

Noun (3)

derivative of foil entry 1

First Known Use

Verb (1)

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Noun (1)

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb (2)

1611, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun (2)

1594, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun (3)

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of foil was in the 14th century

Dictionary Entries Near foil

Cite this Entry

“Foil.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/foil. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

foil

1 of 3 verb
: to prevent from achieving a goal : defeat
foil a plot

foil

2 of 3 noun
1
: a very thin sheet of metal
tin or aluminum foil
2
: one that serves as a contrast to another
acted as a foil for the comedian

foil

3 of 3 noun
: a fencing weapon having a light flexible blade with a blunt point
Etymology

Verb

Middle English foilen "to trample underfoot," from early French fuller, fouler "to shrink and thicken (cloth), trample underfoot," from Latin fullare "to shrink and thicken (cloth)"

Noun

Middle English foil "leaf," from early French fuille, foille (same meaning), derived from Latin folium "leaf" — related to foliage

Noun

origin unknown

Medical Definition

foil

noun
: very thin sheet metal (as of gold or platinum) used especially in filling teeth

More from Merriam-Webster on foil

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