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Added 1 October 2026

foul

/faʊl/ adjective

In Latin: foedus Wiktionary

adjective Definition from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). Pronunciation from Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org. More about foul at Wordnik → Where our words come from →

Covered with, or containing unclean matter; dirty.
This cloth is too foul to use as a duster.
Obscene, vulgar or abusive.
The rascal spewed forth a series of foul words.
Detestable, unpleasant, loathsome.
He has a foul set of friends.

verb

To make dirty.
to foul the face or hands with mire
To besmirch.
He's fouled his reputation.
To obstruct, block, or otherwise interfere with (something), for example by clogging (a drain, gun barrel, chimney, etc) or by being in the way of (a gunshot, etc).
The hair has fouled the drain.

noun

A breach of the rules of a game, especially one involving inappropriate contact with an opposing player in order to gain an advantage; for example, tripping someone up in soccer, or contact of any kind in basketball.
A (usually accidental) contact between a bowler and the lane before the bowler has released the ball.
A foul ball, a ball which has been hit outside of the base lines.
Jones hit a foul up over the screen.

Origin

Inherited from Middle English ffoul, foul, foull, fowel, fowle, fuyle, voul, vul, from Old English fūl (“foul, dirty, unclean, impure, vile, corrupt, rotten, stinking, guilty”), from Proto-West Germanic *fūl, from Proto-Germanic *fūlaz (“foul, rotten”), from Proto-Indo-European *puH- (“foul, rotten”).

From Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org (CC BY-SA)

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