foolishness

/ˈfuːlɪʃnəs/ (bre, ipa) · /ˈfuːlɪʃnəs/ (ame, ipa) · /ˈfü-lish-nəs/ (ame, mw)

foolishness — noun

1. behaviour or thinking that shows poor judgment and a lack of common sense, often

1.名詞B1
釋義

behaviour or thinking that shows poor judgment and a lack of common sense, often leading to unwanted results or regret.

例句

The sheer foolishness of hiking in a thunderstorm was obvious to everyone except Roya.

collocation: sheer foolishness

Defne later admitted her foolishness in believing the promises of the online scam.

the foolishness of + gerund

同義詞
  • stupidity

    harsher in tone; suggests low intelligence rather than poor judgment

  • folly

    more formal; often refers to a grand, self-defeating mistake

  • nonsense

    focuses on ideas or speech being pointless rather than behaviour being unwise

反義詞
  • wisdom

    the ability to make good judgments based on experience

  • good sense

    practical, sound judgment in everyday matters

文法句型

the foolishness of + noun/gerund

sheer/pure foolishness

用法筆記

Almost always uncountable. Frequently found in the patterns 'the foolishness of + doing something' and 'sheer / pure foolishness'.

常見錯誤

❌His foolishness of believing the lie cost him everything.
✅His foolishness in believing the lie cost him everything.
💡the standard pattern uses 'foolishness in + gerund', not 'of + gerund'.
❌She called his plan a stupidity.
✅She called his plan a piece of foolishness.
💡'foolishness' is uncountable and cannot take 'a' alone in this sense.

2. something that a person does or says that is not sensible, often causing embarra

2.名詞B1
釋義

something that a person does or says that is not sensible, often causing embarrassment, annoyance, or minor trouble.

例句

Valentina laughed off her late-night online shopping as a harmless youthful foolishness.

countable: a + foolishness

The CEO described the failed merger as the worst business foolishness he had ever seen.

同義詞
  • mistake

    neutral; implies an error without the same judgemental tone

  • silliness

    lighter in tone; suggests harmless fun rather than poor judgment

  • blunder

    more serious; a careless or embarrassing mistake

反義詞

文法句型

a foolishness

countable: plural -es

用法筆記

Countable use (a foolishness / foolishnesses) is less common than uncountable. It typically refers to a single specific act or remark that the speaker judges to be silly but not seriously harmful.

常見錯誤

❌That was a foolishness move.
✅That was a foolish move.
💡'foolishness' is a noun, not an adjective. Use 'foolish' as the adjective form.
❌He committed many foolishness.
✅He committed many foolishnesses.
💡When countable, the plural form is 'foolishnesses'.