fall/run afoul of

idiom

chiefly US
: to get into trouble because of not obeying or following (the law, a rule, etc.)
After leaving home he fell afoul of the law.
an investor who has run afoul of stock market rules

Examples of fall/run afoul of in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Section 338 tariffs would likely run afoul of U.S. commitments to the World Trade organization and existing trade agreements. Jill Goldenziel, Forbes.com, 1 June 2025 As with many practices, however, the Trump administration has taken a distinctly different tack with Title VI, aggressively targeting the bottom lines of colleges and school districts that run afoul of its priorities, and at times flouting standard procedure. Troy Closson, New York Times, 30 May 2025 The White House argues that his actions in helping to lead campus protests against Israel's treatment of Palestinians run afoul of the president's order banning antisemitism. Sareen Habeshian, Axios, 19 May 2025 In recent months, the NIH has terminated grants that run afoul of the government’s positions on diversity and gender, and shut off funding to entire research universities. Daniel Engber, The Atlantic, 20 May 2025 See All Example Sentences for fall/run afoul of

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Fall/run afoul of.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/fall%2Frun%20afoul%20of. Accessed 6 Jun. 2025.

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!