foul

[ foul ]

adjective

, foul·er, foul·est.

1. grossly offensive to the senses; disgustingly loathsome; noisome:

   a foul smell.

   Synonyms: repellent, repulsive

   Antonyms: pleasant

2. containing or characterized by offensive or noisome matter:

   foul air; foul stagnant water.

   Synonyms: stinking, putrid, fetid

3. filthy or dirty, as places, receptacles, clothes, etc.

   Synonyms: impure, polluted, unclean

   Antonyms: clean

4. muddy, as a road.
5. clogged or obstructed with foreign matter:

   a foul gas jet.

   Antonyms: clear

6. unfavorable or stormy:

   foul weather.

   Synonyms: tempestuous, rainy

   Antonyms: clear

7. contrary, violent, or unfavorable, as the wind.

   Synonyms: adverse

8. grossly offensive in a moral sense.
9. abominable, wicked, or vile, as deeds, crime, slander, etc.

   Synonyms: infamous, shameful, base

10. scurrilous, profane, or obscene; offensive:

    foul language.

    Synonyms: vulgar, smutty, low, coarse

11. contrary to the rules or established usages, as of a sport or game; unfair:

    a foul blow.

12. Baseball. pertaining to a foul ball or a foul line.
13. limited in freedom of movement by obstruction, entanglement, etc.:

    a foul anchor.

14. abounding in errors or in marks of correction, as a printer's proof, manuscript, or the like.
15. Nautical.
    1. (of the underwater portion of a hull) encrusted and impeded with barnacles, seaweed, etc.
    2. (of a mooring place) involving inconveniences and dangers, as of colliding with vessels or other objects when swinging with the tide.
    3. (of the bottom of a body of water) affording a poor hold for an anchor ( clean ).
16. North England and Scot.. not fair; ugly or unattractive.
17. Obsolete. disfigured.

adverb

1. in a foul manner; vilely; unfairly.
2. Baseball. into foul territory; so as to be foul:

   It looked like a homer when he hit it, but it went foul.

noun

1. something that is foul.
2. a collision or entanglement:

   a foul between two racing sculls.

3. a violation of the rules of a sport or game:

   The referee called it a foul.

4. Baseball. foul ball.

verb (used with object)

1. to make foul; defile; soil.

   Synonyms: pollute, taint, besmirch, dirty, stain, sully

   Antonyms: clean

2. to clog or obstruct, as a chimney or the bore of a gun.
3. to collide with.
4. to cause to become entangled or caught, as a rope.
5. to defile; dishonor; disgrace:

   His reputation had been fouled by unfounded accusations.

   Synonyms: shame

6. Nautical. (of barnacles, seaweed, etc.) to cling to (a hull) so as to encumber.
7. Baseball. to hit (a pitched ball) foul (often followed by off or away ):

   He fouled off two curves before being struck out on a fastball.

verb (used without object)

1. to become foul.
2. Nautical. to come into collision, as two boats.
3. to become entangled or clogged:

   The rope fouled.

4. Sports. to make a foul play; give a foul blow.
5. Baseball. to hit a foul ball.

verb phrase

1. Informal. to cause confusion or disorder; bungle; spoil.
2. 1. Baseball. to be put out by hitting a foul ball caught on the fly by a player on the opposing team.
   2. Basketball. to be expelled from a game for having committed more fouls than is allowed.

foul

/ faʊl /

adjective

1. offensive to the senses; revolting
2. offensive in odour; stinking
3. charged with or full of dirt or offensive matter; filthy
4. (of food) putrid; rotten
5. morally or spiritually offensive; wicked; vile
6. obscene; vulgar

   foul language

7. not in accordance with accepted standards or established rules; unfair

   to resort to foul means

8. (esp of weather) unpleasant or adverse
9. blocked or obstructed with dirt or foreign matter

   a foul drain

10. entangled or impeded

    a foul anchor

11. (of the bottom of a vessel) covered with barnacles and other growth that slow forward motion
12. informal.
    unsatisfactory or uninteresting; bad

    a foul book

13. archaic.
    ugly

noun

1. sport
   1. a violation of the rules
   2. ( as modifier )

      a foul blow

      a foul shot

2. something foul
3. an entanglement or collision, esp in sailing or fishing

verb

1. to make or become dirty or polluted
2. to become or cause to become entangled or snarled
3. tr to disgrace or dishonour
4. to become or cause to become clogged or choked
5. tr nautical (of underwater growth) to cling to (the bottom of a vessel) so as to slow its motion
6. tr sport to commit a foul against (an opponent)
7. tr baseball to hit (a ball) in an illegal manner
8. intr sport to infringe the rules
9. tr (of an animal, especially a dog) to defecate on

   do not let your dog foul the footpath

10. to collide with (a boat, etc)

adverb

1. in a foul or unfair manner
2. fall foul of
   fall foul of
   1. to come into conflict with
   2. nautical to come into collision with

Derived Forms

• ˈfoully, adverb

Other Words From

• foully adverb
• over·foul adjective
• over·foully adverb
• over·foulness noun
• un·foul adjective
• un·foully adverb
• un·fouled adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of foul¹

before 900; (adj. and noun) Middle English ful, foul, Old English fūl; cognate with Gothic fuls, Old Norse fūll, Old High German fūl; akin to Latin pūs pus, pūtēre to stink, Greek pýon pus; (adv.) Middle English fule, foule, derivative of the adj.; (v.) Middle English fulen, derivative of the adj.

Word History and Origins

Origin of foul¹

Old English fūl ; related to Old Norse fūll , Gothic fūls smelling offensively, Latin pūs pus , Greek puol pus

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. fall foul / afoul of,
   1. to collide with, as ships.
   2. to come into conflict with; quarrel.
   3. to make an attack; assault.
2. foul one's nest, to dishonor one's own home, family, or the like.
3. run foul / afoul of, to come into collision or controversy with:

   to run foul of the press.

More idioms and phrases containing foul

• run afoul of

Synonym Study

See dirty.

Example Sentences

Entering through a window, Mono emerges into a foul kitchen where insects buzz over towering dirty dishes.

From Washington Post

Jamorko Pickett posted 12 points, eight rebounds and three assists, and Chudier Bile also scored 12 points before fouling out.

From Washington Post

We all have to go in and rebound and take an offensive foul.

From Washington Post

The 22-year-old forward didn’t shoot well and flubbed fouling Heat center Bam Adebayo when the big man caught the ball on an inbounds pass during the last play of the game with the Washington Wizards up three.

From Washington Post

Justyn Mutts added 17 points, and Hunter Cattoor scored 12 before fouling out.

From Washington Post

Father Joel Román Salazar died in a car crash in 2013; his death was ruled an accident, but the suspicion of foul play persists.

From The Daily Beast

Malcolm Tucker, a foul-mouthed political advisor, was the role that turned Capaldi into a household name in Britain.

From The Daily Beast

Foul-mouthed chauvinist who flirted with chicks in a hot tub or celebrity-friendly sociopolitical satirist?

From The Daily Beast

Playing the foul-mouthed bad character will become as predictable and counter-intuitive as a playing a thousand Joeys.

From The Daily Beast

Miller took particular exception to a post in which Kelley had worried she might fall victim to foul play.

From The Daily Beast

Two years later this promising recruit, having fallen foul of the military authorities, had to leave the service under a cloud.

From Project Gutenberg

But I have some more foul way to trot through still, in your Epistles and Satyrs, &c.

From Project Gutenberg

After he was securely bound he was forced to stand while the two, with foul epithets, hung the body of the corporal over the road.

From Project Gutenberg

Without warning, we found ourselves foul of a picket-line, and the vague forms of grazing horses loomed close by.

From Project Gutenberg

But it was strongly rumoured that there had been foul play, peculation, even forgery.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• catch
• choke
• clog
• contaminate
• pollute
• twist