foolery

noun

ˈfül-rē How to pronounce foolery (audio)
Definition of foolerynext
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 tomfoolery
wildly playful or mischievous behavior let the kids have a little foolery once in a while

Synonyms & Similar Words

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of foolery Jeffrey Jones played Principal Ed Rooney, Ferris' nemesis, who is dead set on catching Bueller in his foolery, but ultimately fails at his mission. — Emma Urdangen, PEOPLE, 14 June 2026 One way to stop this proliferation of deep-fake nudity is to prosecute the offenders and make examples that such foolery has consequences. — Charles Selle, Chicago Tribune, 20 Apr. 2026 Lane didn't stop the foolery there, though. — Lauren Huff, Entertainment Weekly, 27 Jan. 2026 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
Recent Examples of Synonyms for foolery
  1. insanity
  2. tomfoolery
  3. idiocy
  4. buffoonery
  5. absurdity
  6. joking
  7. clowning
  8. horseplay
Noun
  • Claiming that white skin color is why Bueckers and other white women have had success/opportunities, is insanity.
    — Jon Root OutKick, FOXNews.com, 9 Oct. 2026
  • And that was like Vitalogy, probably the peak of the insanity.
    — Brian Hiatt, Rolling Stone, 6 Oct. 2026
Definition of insanity
Noun
  • After the film’s theatrical release on June 26, the decades-long saga of pranks and tomfoolery is finally coming to an end.
    — Isabelle Farina, Variety, 9 Sep. 2026
  • New assistant coach Alice Chilton is a blatant remodeling of Roy Kent — a brusque ex-soccer player who’s reluctant to engage with Ted’s tomfoolery or personal prodding — but Tanya Reynolds’ performance is equal turns wounded and witty.
    — Ben Travers, IndieWire, 5 Aug. 2026
Definition of tomfoolery
Noun
  • There's always been an element of complete idiocy in the culture.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 6 Oct. 2026
  • Forty years on, Spy magazine is best remembered, not unjustly, as the first entity to call out Trump for his tackiness, villainy, and arrant idiocy.
    — David Kamp, Air Mail, 3 Oct. 2026
Definition of idiocy
Noun
  • The show creates space for other types of buffoonery as well.
    — Georgie McKeon, Vulture, 5 Oct. 2026
  • Still, there's a remarkable level of buffoonery in his analysis.
    — Bobby Burack OutKick, FOXNews.com, 4 Aug. 2026
Definition of buffoonery
Noun
  • Savage’s movie is so committed to its own absurdity that the extraordinary begins to feel mundane.
    — Alison Foreman, IndieWire, 9 Oct. 2026
  • But series creator Rolin Jones and his staff also fully understood the absurdity of that sentence.
    — Whitney Friedlander, Los Angeles Times, 8 Oct. 2026
Definition of absurdity
Noun
  • Russell was mentioned in that speech, but in a joking way, playing off of how frequent Oscars director Glenn Weiss, who won for his role helming the 2018 Academy Awards telecast, had used his speech to propose to his then-girlfriend.
    — Hilary Lewis, HollywoodReporter, 9 Oct. 2026
  • Arch Manning's joking comments at a news conference about a fake video of coach Steve Sarkisian slapping ESPN reporter Holly Rowe erupted in controversy.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 17 Sep. 2026
Definition of joking
Noun
  • On paper, the script didn’t seem that funny, and the looseness of it all — the clowning, the lack of a traditional plot structure — seemed kind of slapdash.
    — Victor Garber, Vulture, 17 Sep. 2026
  • The clowning might be a little too effortful.
    — Theater Critic, Los Angeles Times, 13 May 2026
Definition of clowning
Noun
  • The video depicts a group of students engaged in horseplay, progressing to two 15-year-olds tussling and laughing, according to the suit.
    — Eric Peterson, Chicago Tribune, 23 Sep. 2026
  • The undefeated South Dakota Coyotes prowled into Albertsons Stadium this weekend and turned what could have been an evening of horseplay for the Broncos into a dogfight.
    — Shaun Goodwin, Idaho Statesman, 20 Sep. 2026
Definition of horseplay

Browse Nearby Words

fooleries
foolery
foolhardily
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Cite this Entry

“Foolery.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/foolery. Accessed 14 Oct. 2026.

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