afoul of
prepositionTo save this word, you'll need to log in.
\ ə-ˈfau̇-ləv 
\
\Definition of afoul of
1 : in or into conflict with
ran afoul of the law
2 : in or into collision or entanglement with
Keep scrolling for more
Comments on afoul of
What made you want to look up afoul of? Please tell us where you read or heard it (including the quote, if possible).
Test Your Vocabulary
A More Exception(al) Quiz
- Which of the following words is not a synonym for ‘a young person’?
Can you spell these 10 commonly misspelled words?
TAKE THE QUIZ
Test Your Knowledge - and learn some interesting things along the way.
TAKE THE QUIZLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridgedWords at Play
Ask the Editors
Share afoul of
Time Traveler for afoul of
The first known use of afoul of was in 1819
See more words from the same year