fool
fool1 / foōl/ • n. a person who acts unwisely or imprudently; a silly person: what a fool I was to do this. ∎ hist. a jester or clown, esp. one retained in a noble household. ∎ inf. a person devoted to a particular activity: he is a running fool. ∎ archaic a person who is duped.• v. [tr.] trick or deceive (someone); dupe: he fooled nightclub managers into believing he was a successful businessman she had been fooling herself in thinking she could remain indifferent. ∎ [intr.] act in a joking, frivolous, or teasing way: I shouted at him impatiently to stop fooling around. ∎ [intr.] (fool around) engage in casual or extramarital sexual activity.• adj. inf. foolish or silly: that damn fool waiter.PHRASES: be no (or nobody's) fool be a shrewd or prudent person.make a fool of trick or deceive (someone) so that they look foolish. ∎ (make a fool of oneself) behave in an incompetent or inappropriate way that makes one appear foolish.play (or act) the fool behave in a playful or silly way.you could have fooled me! used to express cynicism or doubt about an assertion: “Fun, was it? Well, you could have fooled me!”PHRASAL VERBS: fool with toy with; play idly with: I like fooling with cameras. ∎ tease (a person): we've just been fooling with you.fool2 • n. chiefly Brit. a cold dessert made of puréed fruit mixed or served with cream or custard: raspberry fool with cream.