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folly

Meaning in simple English, pronunciation and examples

Pronunciation: US /ˈfɑli/ · UK /ˈfɒli/

folly means: A lack of good judgment, especially when someone ignores likely problems or acts without thinking ahead.

noun

FOOLISHNESSC1

A lack of good judgment, especially when someone ignores likely problems or acts without thinking ahead.

  • Going alone would be folly.
  • She regretted the follies of her youth.
  • The disaster exposed the folly of building on the floodplain.

How to use it: it is folly to do something (It is folly to spend money you do not have.); the folly of doing something (He realized the folly of ignoring her advice.)

Similar words: foolishness, stupidity

Opposites: wisdom

Common phrases: sheer folly, the folly of, act of folly

DECORATIVE BUILDINGC2

An unusual building made mainly to look interesting or beautiful, rather than for a practical use.

  • A stone folly stands in the garden.
  • The tower is a folly built to resemble a ruined castle.
  • Visitors can walk around the estate's unusual follies.

Common phrases: garden folly, ornamental folly, eighteenth-century folly

Questions about folly

What does folly mean?

A lack of good judgment, especially when someone ignores likely problems or acts without thinking ahead.

What is folly in other languages?

Türkçe: akılsızlık · Español: insensatez · Français: sottise · Deutsch: Torheit · Italiano: stoltezza · 日本語: 愚かさ

How do you pronounce folly?

In American English /ˈfɑli/; in British English /ˈfɒli/.

How do you use folly in a sentence?

Going alone would be folly. She regretted the follies of her youth.

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folly in other languages

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