Synonyms of folly

folly

noun

ˈfä-lē 

1

as in insanity

a foolish act or idea

the American purchase of Alaska was originally considered a grand folly

Synonyms & Similar Words

• insanity
• idiocy
• absurdity
• stupidity
• madness
• imbecility
• foppery
• foolery
• inanity
• bêtise
• lunacy
• fatuity
• asininity
• blunder
• foolishness
• craziness
• buffoonery
• tomfoolery
• absurdness
• nonsense
• witlessness
• twaddle
• senselessness
• monkeyshine(s)
• drivel
• inaneness
• shenanigan(s)
• bungle
• flub
• goof
• humbug
• howler

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• wisdom
• discretion
• prudence
• sagacity
• forethought
• inspiration
• brainstorm

2

as in madness

lack of good sense or judgment

in all my folly, I didn't think about how my actions would hurt my father

Synonyms & Similar Words

• insanity
• madness
• simplicity
• absurdity
• foolishness
• unwisdom
• fatuousness
• imbecility
• craziness
• preposterousness
• daftness
• inanity
• dottiness
• wackiness
• silliness
• lunacy
• fatuity
• nuttiness
• zaniness
• witlessness
• senselessness
• stupidity
• asininity
• stupidness
• brainlessness
• balminess
• nonsensicalness
• idiocy
• obtuseness
• dumbness
• unreasonableness
• simplemindedness
• slowness
• dippiness
• irrationality
• dullness
• simpleness
• feeblemindedness
• mindlessness
• fallacy
• oafishness
• ridiculousness
• dopiness
• denseness
• doltishness
• vacuity
• ludicrousness
• weirdness
• kookiness
• gormlessness
• laughableness
• dim-wittedness

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• wisdom
• prudence
• sagacity
• sanity
• soundness
• reasonableness
• sapience
• validity
• rationality
• sensibleness
• insight
• perception
• reasonability
• logicality
• sagaciousness
• discernment
• sageness
• logicalness
• rationalness
• percipience

3

as in nonsense

language, behavior, or ideas that are absurd and contrary to good sense

enough of this folly about moving to the Australian outback

Synonyms & Similar Words

• nonsense
• stupidity
• silliness
• nuts
• garbage
• rubbish
• foolishness
• blah
• absurdity
• drool
• insanity
• absurdness
• craziness
• bunk
• muck
• madness
• jazz
• trumpery
• twaddle
• rot
• humbuggery
• claptrap
• trash
• tosh
• balderdash
• bunkum
• hogwash
• piffle
• tommyrot
• beans
• folderol
• hokum
• punk
• baloney
• blither
• guff
• poppycock
• bull
• crock
• flapdoodle
• blatherskite
• bosh
• bilge
• fiddle
• hooey
• drivel
• fudge
• blather
• senselessness
• malarkey
• fiddlesticks
• blarney
• codswallop
• humbug
• hokeypokey
• idiocy
• horsefeathers
• fiddle-faddle
• crapola
• nerts
• applesauce
• taradiddle
• hoodoo
• moonshine
• imbecility
• foolery
• flannel
• inanity
• slush
• tomfoolery
• lunacy
• fatuity
• kookiness
• asininity
• witlessness
• greek
• monkey business
• gas
• rigmarole
• inaneness
• hot air
• hocus-pocus
• monkeyshine(s)
• double-talk
• shenanigan(s)
• hoity-toity

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• reasonableness
• rationality
• sense
• common sense
• sensibleness
• judgment
• wisdom
• reasonability
• horse sense
• levelheadedness
• discernment

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of folly

Digger epitomizes the difference between big swing and hubristic folly more than any film since Francis Ford Coppola’s Megalopolis, another wildly ambitious bid to skewer the chaos of contemporary reality. — David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 29 Sep. 2026

Compounded by the sudden passing of Lily’s grandfather—which renders her initial motivation to study Mandarin moot—these follies only deepen beneath a veil of complicated mourning. — Kat Chen, Condé Nast Traveler, 8 Sep. 2026

The idea that any neighborhood can insulate itself from the effects of demand that far outstrips supply is folly. — New York Daily News Editorial Board, New York Daily News, 23 Aug. 2026

The broader opportunity costs of the United States’ Middle Eastern follies are even more insidious. — Emma Ashford, Foreign Affairs, 12 Aug. 2026