foolhardy
Americanadjective
adjective
Other Word Forms
- foolhardily adverb
- foolhardiness noun
Etymology
Origin of foolhardy
1175–1225; Middle English folhardy < Old French fol hardi. See fool 1, hardy 1
Explanation
If you decide you are going to scale Mt. Everest next weekend without any training or experience, that would be a foolhardy decision. Use the adjective foolhardy to describe someone who rushes into action without considering the consequences. Foolhardy is a combination of the noun fool and the adjective hardy, meaning "brave" or "bold." Put them together and you’ve got “foolishly brave.” Someone who is foolhardy throws caution to the wind and takes reckless chances. A foolhardy mistake is typically the result of this kind of impulsive behavior. But foolhardy doesn’t always imply foolishness or stupidity; foolhardy can convey courage and romance, as in the case of a foolhardy passion or desire.
Vocabulary lists containing foolhardy
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
So they’ve been trying to talk their leaders out of this foolhardy mission.
From Salon • Mar. 13, 2026
“If anyone wants to keep their job as CEO, it would be tremendously foolhardy to adopt a homegrown, vibe-coded solution,” Meyer said, referring to the process of creating software via AI text prompts.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 4, 2026
The number of people who applied for unemployment benefits after Thanksgiving jumped to a three-month high, but it’s foolhardy to judge the overall health of the labor market on holiday seasons.
From MarketWatch • Dec. 15, 2025
Some concluded it was foolhardy to even consider rebuilding in such a fire-prone place.
From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 30, 2025
They rarely ventured into the water near the village, preferring to stay in the area near the swamp, so only the foolhardy were at risk of being dragged into the Sogozha’s depths.
From Anya and the Dragon by Sofiya Pasternack
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
