1
as in to horse around
to engage in attention-getting playful or boisterous behavior
quit fooling around on the jungle gym, or you'll get hurt
Synonyms & Similar Words
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2
as in to play
to spend time in aimless activity
we fooled around outdoors for a while, then went in to get some work done
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of fool around
Plotwise, four teens who grew up with technology and like to fool around on their laptops invading various verboten sites and having a great time doing it one day happen upon a bright idea.
—
Pete Hammond, Deadline, 8 Mar. 2025
Bigger, bolder personalities may shine as jokers, always fooling around, or as storytellers, bringing imagination to life.
—Julianna Bragg, CNN, 23 Feb. 2025
While Mark and Helly were fooling around, Helly wasn’t fulfilling her promise to go get the directions Irving left tucked behind Dylan’s motivational poster.
—Ben Travers, IndieWire, 21 Feb. 2025
While the siblings have the habit of getting into troubles and to only use their creative skills to fool around, Michael sees in them a real talent.
—Maelle Beauget-Uhl, Forbes, 5 Dec. 2024
See All Example Sentences for fool around
Pete Hammond, Deadline, 8 Mar. 2025
Bigger, bolder personalities may shine as jokers, always fooling around, or as storytellers, bringing imagination to life.
—Julianna Bragg, CNN, 23 Feb. 2025
While Mark and Helly were fooling around, Helly wasn’t fulfilling her promise to go get the directions Irving left tucked behind Dylan’s motivational poster.
—Ben Travers, IndieWire, 21 Feb. 2025
While the siblings have the habit of getting into troubles and to only use their creative skills to fool around, Michael sees in them a real talent.
—Maelle Beauget-Uhl, Forbes, 5 Dec. 2024
See All Example Sentences for fool around
Recent Examples of Synonyms for fool around
Verb
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Running or horsing around with sparklers can also cause injuries and burns when users trip and fall.—
Justin Laube,
EverydayHealth.com,
2 July 2025
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Heath Ryan, who represented Australia in dressage at the 2008 Olympics, can be seen in the video – which the rider said is about two years old – hitting a horse around 40 times.—
Matias Grez,
CNN Money,
13 June 2025
Verb
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Pascal and Bad Bunny played the lothario's hot brothers.—
Raechal Shewfelt,
Entertainment Weekly,
1 Nov. 2025
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The Heat entered Tuesday’s matchup against the Hornets having outscored opponents by a total of 46 points in the 29 minutes that the bench quartet of Fontecchio, Jaquez, Jovic and Smith played together through the first three games of the season.—
Anthony Chiang,
Miami Herald,
31 Oct. 2025
Verb
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The chicken, now cut up into small pieces at the lunch hour, soaks up the broth and packs an even more flavorful punch.—
Joseph Hernandez,
Kansas City Star,
30 Oct. 2025
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Guests ate slices of Chantilly sheet cakes from Whole Foods, which were cut up in the back and served with the rest of the desserts.—
Ashlyn Robinette,
PEOPLE,
28 Oct. 2025
Verb
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For Halloween 2021, Pepper Thai — cookbook author and Chrissy Teigen's mom — showed off her costume on Instagram as the ultimate momager, wearing a fur coat and holding a Hermès Birkin bag.—
Diana Pearl,
PEOPLE,
31 Oct. 2025
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Lemmon takes on the sheer look in a diaphanous black silk organza skirt and jacket layered over the tricolor, while Jacobson leaves her suit jacket open to show off an ab-baring cropped button-down and midi skirt.—
Hannah Jackson,
Vogue,
30 Oct. 2025
Verb
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It’s sponsored by the California Chamber of Commerce, which doesn’t mess around.—
The Editorial Board,
Oc Register,
28 Oct. 2025
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Apple isn't messing around with this update.—
PC Magazine,
PC Magazine,
21 Oct. 2025
Verb
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In 2019, city employees began hanging about 500 trick-or-treat pumpkin buckets in the trees on Main Street every October.—
Elliott Harrell,
Travel + Leisure,
18 Oct. 2025
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Orion Nebula Those viewing from a dark sky location may also notice a blurry patch of light hanging about 5 degrees below Orion's belt.—
Anthony Wood,
Space.com,
14 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Its general sensibility seems more Superstore than The Office, down to the interstitial montages of customers acting up in the perpetually overcrowded waiting room.—
Angie Han,
HollywoodReporter,
13 Oct. 2025
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Sturm said his back started acting up after the team’s first practice.—
Michael Russo,
New York Times,
1 Oct. 2025
Verb
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According to Hamel, who shared a demonstration of the lifelike robot earlier this year, Somers had been kicking around the idea for decades with inventor Ray Kurzweil.—
Karu F Daniels,
Mercury News,
22 Oct. 2025
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Originally from Asheville, North Carolina, Forsberg has been kicking around Pittsburgh for a hair more than a decade now.—
Wilder Davies,
Bon Appetit Magazine,
13 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Fool around.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/fool%20around. Accessed 5 Nov. 2025.
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