1
as in insanity
a foolish act or idea
investing in that company now would be foolery
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in joking
wildly playful or mischievous behavior
let the kids have a little foolery once in a while
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of foolery
The whole of humanity doesn’t fit tidily into three acts, even assuming as much frame-breaking foolery as Wilder allows.
—
New York Times, 25 Apr. 2022
Political pranking is traditionally thought of as benign foolery targeting the powerful.
—Stanislav Budnitsky, The Conversation, 19 Apr. 2022
Eric Andre, Tyler the Creator and Machine Gun Kelly all drop by to participate in the Jack-foolery.
—David Fear, Rolling Stone, 2 Feb. 2022
Our magpie eyes will always be drawn to foolery and ephemera.
—Giles Hattersley, Vogue, 13 Dec. 2021
Once every ten years, the first of April assumes a far more significant importance than the annual sharing of April foolery.
—James Deutsch, Smithsonian Magazine, 15 Apr. 2020
All the organs of his body were working — bowels digesting food, skin renewing itself, nails growing, tissues forming — all toiling away in solemn foolery.
—John Hirschauer, National Review, 17 Sep. 2019
This single photograph simultaneously invokes the histories of racial violence and racial degradation, cruelly dismissing their gravity by casting them in the guise of comedy and youthful foolery.
—Drew Gilpin Faust, The Atlantic, 18 July 2019
The conceit allowed for some fancy dancing, along with a display of the talents of the musical director, Gregory Boover, who also portrayed Feste as a jazz musician, giving weight to his character’s foolery.
—Edward Rothstein, WSJ, 11 July 2019
New York Times, 25 Apr. 2022
Political pranking is traditionally thought of as benign foolery targeting the powerful.
—Stanislav Budnitsky, The Conversation, 19 Apr. 2022
Eric Andre, Tyler the Creator and Machine Gun Kelly all drop by to participate in the Jack-foolery.
—David Fear, Rolling Stone, 2 Feb. 2022
Our magpie eyes will always be drawn to foolery and ephemera.
—Giles Hattersley, Vogue, 13 Dec. 2021
Once every ten years, the first of April assumes a far more significant importance than the annual sharing of April foolery.
—James Deutsch, Smithsonian Magazine, 15 Apr. 2020
All the organs of his body were working — bowels digesting food, skin renewing itself, nails growing, tissues forming — all toiling away in solemn foolery.
—John Hirschauer, National Review, 17 Sep. 2019
This single photograph simultaneously invokes the histories of racial violence and racial degradation, cruelly dismissing their gravity by casting them in the guise of comedy and youthful foolery.
—Drew Gilpin Faust, The Atlantic, 18 July 2019
The conceit allowed for some fancy dancing, along with a display of the talents of the musical director, Gregory Boover, who also portrayed Feste as a jazz musician, giving weight to his character’s foolery.
—Edward Rothstein, WSJ, 11 July 2019
Recent Examples of Synonyms for foolery
Noun
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More Sargent/Getty Images The sheer insanity of how fast the ball got out of the ballpark captivated a worldwide audience.—
Jackson Roberts,
MSNBC Newsweek,
3 Sep. 2025
-
With the ambulance only eight minutes away from Hind, Omar sees only insanity in the way the situation stretches into an hours-long ordeal.—
Sheri Linden,
HollywoodReporter,
3 Sep. 2025
Noun
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When Peanut pulled his second escape act, his owners knew where to look and handled Peanut's disappearance in a joking manner.—
Michael Nied,
People.com,
2 Sep. 2025
-
Multiple outlets that examined the reporting identified the claim as unverified and labeled the story a hoax; Colbert had previously made a joking on-air reference to streaming platforms but had not announced any deal with Netflix.—
Megan Cartwright,
MSNBC Newsweek,
1 Sep. 2025
Noun
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But my naivete and idiocy about what this was going to take was staggering to me just six months later.—
Scott Feinberg,
HollywoodReporter,
19 Aug. 2025
Noun
-
Be careful and look out for more of your mom's tomfoolery.—
Charna Flam,
People.com,
25 Aug. 2025
-
For instance, in between Avi’s 2004 plane ride that starts the episode’s main arc and its last-second flash-forward to 2022, the premiere revels in the rapid wordplay of a gentile girlfriend meeting a vibrant Jewish family and the general tomfoolery of a jubilant bar mitzvah.—
Ben Travers,
IndieWire,
22 Aug. 2025
Noun
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In terms that viewers of the original series might understand, Esmeralda falls somewhere between the tyranny of Michael Scott, the absurdity of Dwight Schrute, and the self-involvement of Kelly Kapoor with a particular charisma that only Impacciatore could pull off.—
Jackson McHenry,
Vulture,
4 Sep. 2025
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Still, Daniels and Koman drew on real research to capture the rhythms and absurdities of newsroom life.—
Andy Meek,
Forbes.com,
3 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
He’s been tinkering with this messaging on and off since damn near the start of the century, when his criticism of the genre shifted from the power-holding executives (both white and Black) of the music industry who were profiting off buffoonery, a la Bamboozled, to rap music itself.—
Alphonse Pierre,
Pitchfork,
15 Aug. 2025
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Stewart’s switch from his usual snark to imitate Colbert’s buffoonery proved how spiteful and irreligious political humor has become since the left’s worship of Barack Obama and subsequent persecution of President Trump.—
Armond White,
National Review,
25 July 2025
Noun
-
And a bit of Saturday madness, granted most of that came 400 miles away.—
Steve Millar,
Chicago Tribune,
2 Sep. 2025
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There is a method to the madness, multiple sources say.—
Alex Weprin,
HollywoodReporter,
2 Sep. 2025
Noun
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Finally, after plenty of clowning, Taylor Swift has revealed that her 12th album is on the way, titled The Life of a Showgirl.—
Tom Smyth,
Vulture,
13 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Foolery.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/foolery. Accessed 9 Sep. 2025.
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