1
as in lunatic
a person who lacks good sense or judgment
only a fool would attempt to climb that mountain unprepared
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in clown
a person formerly kept in a royal or noble household to amuse with jests and pranks
a king's fool could get away with saying things that others in the palace couldn't
Synonyms & Similar Words
3
as in sucker
a person with a strong and habitual liking for something
I'm a fool for ice cream
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in foolish
showing or marked by a lack of good sense or judgment
he's always got some fool plan or other
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in to deceive
to cause to believe what is untrue
I fooled him into thinking that we were driving to the store, not to his surprise birthday party
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to joke
to make jokes
an edgy comedian fooling with an appreciative college audience
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of fool
Rosy Cordero, Deadline, 25 Mar. 2026
Antisemitism is the socialism of fools, right?
—Suzanne Schneider, The New York Review of Books, 25 Mar. 2026
Eno Sarris, New York Times, 1 Apr. 2026
But Swanson isn’t ready to endorse reverse framing, a conceptual strategy in which catchers could try to make strikes look like balls in an effort to fool opposing hitters into wasting a challenge.
—Gary Phillips, New York Daily News, 31 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for fool
Noun
Good will play Regina Harris, the new district attorney who is smart, compassionate, and nobody’s fool.
—Rosy Cordero, Deadline, 25 Mar. 2026
Antisemitism is the socialism of fools, right?
—Suzanne Schneider, The New York Review of Books, 25 Mar. 2026
Verb
That’s complicated by the fact that batters take bigger swings on pitches down the pipe than on pitches they are fooled on.
—Eno Sarris, New York Times, 1 Apr. 2026
But Swanson isn’t ready to endorse reverse framing, a conceptual strategy in which catchers could try to make strikes look like balls in an effort to fool opposing hitters into wasting a challenge.
—Gary Phillips, New York Daily News, 31 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for fool
Recent Examples of Synonyms for fool
Noun
-
Friends with a sudden devotion to nature begin making plans to convene in parks; TurboTax becomes your closest email companion; your risk of injury at the hands of a lunatic on a City Bike, haunted by the memory of a New Year’s resolution to exercise, may increase.—
Elly Leavitt,
Vogue,
25 Mar. 2026
-
Secretary of State Marco Rubio wasn’t far behind, saying the war is being waged against religious lunatics.—
Sun Sentinel Editorial Board,
Sun Sentinel,
25 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
When Feld Entertainment unveiled a new edition of the circus with much fanfare in 2023, the only animal in it was a mechanical robot dog and while there was some comedy, traditional circus clowns were not a part of it.—
Christopher Arnott,
Hartford Courant,
5 Apr. 2026
-
In Nuremberg,Göring is closer to a sad clown than to a monster.—
Alice Kaplan,
The New York Review of Books,
4 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
Scanning electron microscopy revealed that the tip of the hectocotylus is covered in small sucker cups that are structurally identical to the sensory suckers on their regular hunting arms.—
Jacek Krywko,
ArsTechnica,
2 Apr. 2026
-
The worst part though, is all the suckers kept coming up from the pear roots.—
Steve Bender,
Southern Living,
1 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
Evening rush-hour commuters — who thought winter was over — felt foolish after the city was socked with a record-breaking spring snowfall.—
Kori Rumore,
Chicago Tribune,
1 Apr. 2026
-
The glamorous branding of premium cards can also lead some consumers to make foolish mistakes by running up high-interest credit card debt.—
Jeff John Roberts,
Fortune,
30 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Memento has withstood the test of time, thanks to memorable performances, intricately layered storytelling, and what the film ultimately reveals about our all-too-human willingness to deceive ourselves in order to escape unpleasant truths.—
ArsTechnica,
ArsTechnica,
6 Apr. 2026
-
Through the window, the lack of visible trees suggested a barren landscape, but looks are deceiving.—
Quanta Magazine,
Quanta Magazine,
6 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
The site joked that Tom Hiddleston would play the franchise’s first Bond boy and Gillian Anderson would be the new M in the Amazon film directed by Denis Villeneuve and written by Peaky Blinders creator Steven Knight — the last two of whom are genuinely attached to the 26th Bond movie.—
Leigh Blickley,
Entertainment Weekly,
1 Apr. 2026
-
The unusual survival of the snack soon sparked reactions online, with many commentators joking about the resilience of the popular cheese puffs.—
Claire Dodds,
MSNBC Newsweek,
1 Apr. 2026
Noun
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The spill hit 1,300 miles of coastline, leading to the deaths of about 900 bald eagles, 300 seals, 1,000 harlequin ducks, 2,800 sea otters and 250,000 seabirds, according to the conservation group Oceana.—
Arizona Republic,
AZCentral.com,
24 Mar. 2026
-
If the Brits are anything to go by, feather boas and harlequin jumpsuits are out, and French-girl flats are in.—
Alice Newbold,
Vogue,
28 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
The Granville Suite, once military reception rooms, is named after Christine Granville, rumored lover of Ian Fleming and apparently Churchill’s favorite spy.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
5 Apr. 2026
-
While the storm is looming, there are new glimmers of possibility—friends can become lovers, strangers can become friends on the subway, the supermarket aisles are charged with meaning.—
Andrew Marantz,
New Yorker,
5 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Fool.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/fool. Accessed 7 Apr. 2026.
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