foil

1 of 5

verb (1)

ˈfȯi(-ə)l 

foiled; foiling; foils

transitive verb

1

a

: to prevent from attaining an end : defeat

always able to foil her enemies

Her accident foiled her from becoming a dancer.

b

: to bring to naught : thwart

foiled the plot

Police foiled an attempted robbery.

2

obsolete : trample

foil

2 of 5

noun (1)

1

: very thin sheet metal

aluminum foil

2

: a thin piece of material (such as metal) put under an inferior or paste stone to add color or brilliance

3

: someone or something that serves as a contrast to another

acted as a foil for a comedian

4

a

: an indentation between cusps in Gothic tracery

b

: one of several arcs that enclose a complex figure

5

: hydrofoil sense 1

foil

3 of 5

verb (2)

foiled; foiling; foils

transitive verb

1

: to back or cover with foil

2

: to enhance by contrast

foil

4 of 5

noun (2)

1

: a light fencing sword having a usually circular guard and a flexible blade of rectangular section tapering to a blunted point compare épée, saber

2

: the art or sport of fencing with the foil

—often used in plural

foil

5 of 5

noun (3)

1

archaic : defeat

2

archaic : the track or trail of an animal

Synonyms

Verb (1)

• baffle
• balk
• beat
• checkmate
• discomfit
• frustrate
• thwart

Choose the Right Synonym for foil

frustrate, thwart, foil, baffle, balk mean to check or defeat another's plan or block achievement of a goal.

frustrate implies making vain or ineffectual all efforts however vigorous or persistent.

frustrated attempts at government reform

thwart suggests frustration or checking by crossing or opposing.

the army thwarted his attempt at a coup

foil implies checking or defeating so as to discourage further effort.

foiled by her parents, he stopped trying to see her

baffle implies frustration by confusing or puzzling.

baffled by the maze of rules and regulations

balk suggests the interposing of obstacles or hindrances.

officials felt that legal restrictions had balked their efforts to control crime

Examples of foil in a Sentence

Verb (1)

in popular fiction the hero will always foil the villain's plans

Recent Examples on the Web

Verb

In this glittery, uplifting ode to acceptance, Emma, a high school student, dreams of taking her girlfriend to her senior prom, but her plans are foiled by a homophobic PTA. —Duante Beddingfield, Detroit Free Press, 8 May 2024

The Ukrainian leader, who has led his country's effort to fend off Russia's more than two-year-old invasion, said last autumn that his security services had foiled at least five Russian plots to assassinate him. —Yuliia Dysa, USA TODAY, 7 May 2024

Aura’s real-time malware protection foiled another 41%, for a total of 99% protection. —PCMAG, 30 Apr. 2024

The hearing in a maximum security courtroom in Stuttgart marks the start of three marathon trials of 27 people in total accused of conspiring in a plot foiled by authorities at the end of 2022. —Reuters, NBC News, 29 Apr. 2024

Many of Conti's members then reformed under the brand of the Hive ransomware operation—which turned out to have been infiltrated for months by the FBI and other agencies who were quietly stealing the group's decryption keys to foil hundreds of their extortion attempts. —Andy Greenberg, WIRED, 7 Feb. 2024

Authorities say the thieves broke into the house in July 1969 in a bid to steal a coin collection, but were foiled by a burglar alarm. —Matthew Brown, Fortune, 30 Jan. 2024

After Haman's plot is foiled, the Jews are actually still in danger — because the king's decree to kill the Jews has gone out, and can't be repealed. —Deena Prichep, NPR, 23 Mar. 2024

Dutch director Michaël Dudok de Wit delivers an unconventional tale of a turtle that repeatedly foils a man’s attempts to escape a tropical island. —Chris Snellgrove, EW.com, 26 Jan. 2024

Noun

At the same time, the difficulty of keeping the boats running clean on the foils and the long lap spread the field, sapping most of the drama from the action. —J. George Gorant, Robb Report, 9 May 2024

Simply fill the piecrust with parchment paper (or foil) and beans, rice, or pie weights, then bake as directed. —Ann Taylor Pittman, Southern Living, 8 May 2024

Yeoh, who fans are used to seeing with lengthier hair, paired her new hairstyle with a silver dress resembling tin foil. —Brenton Blanchet, Peoplemag, 7 May 2024

Use foil to lift candy from baking sheet; break candy into pieces. —Bhg Test Kitchen, Better Homes & Gardens, 6 May 2024

Investigators said all four were frozen solid in shoe boxes wrapped in foil. —Stepheny Price, Fox News, 3 May 2024

Line a baking sheet with foil and lightly oil the foil (or use a broiler pan). —Lynda Balslev, The Mercury News, 15 Apr. 2024

Cover the entire box with construction paper, leaving the single-viewing opening and the foil uncovered. —John Bacon, USA TODAY, 8 Apr. 2024

Top Four Villains: Shane, The Governor, Negan, Alpha Jon Bernthal’s Shane dominated the first two years of Walking Dead, providing Rick with a friendly foil who would foreshadow all the much worse bad guys still to come. —Josh Wigler, The Hollywood Reporter, 29 Mar. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Verb (1)

Middle English foilen "to trample, tread upon, mortify (the flesh), oppress," alteration of fullen "to full (cloth), trample down, oppress," perhaps by analogy with loanwords from French with palatal l that result in variants with -oi- and -u-, as coilen, cullen "to select for quality, pick out, cull entry 1" — more at full entry 5

Noun (1)

Middle English, leaf, from Anglo-French fuille, foille (from Latin folia, plural of folium) & fuil, from Latin folium — more at blade

Noun (2)

origin unknown

Noun (3)

derivative of foil entry 1

First Known Use

Verb (1)

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Noun (1)

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb (2)

1611, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun (2)

1594, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun (3)

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing foil

• aluminum foil
• silver foil

Kids Definition

foil

1 of 3 verb

ˈfȯi(ə)l 

: to prevent from achieving a goal : defeat

foil a plot

foil

2 of 3 noun

1

: a very thin sheet of metal

tin or aluminum foil

2

: one that serves as a contrast to another

acted as a foil for the comedian

foil

3 of 3 noun

: a fencing weapon having a light flexible blade with a blunt point

Etymology

Verb

Middle English foilen "to trample underfoot," from early French fuller, fouler "to shrink and thicken (cloth), trample underfoot," from Latin fullare "to shrink and thicken (cloth)"

Noun

Middle English foil "leaf," from early French fuille, foille (same meaning), derived from Latin folium "leaf" — related to foliage

Noun

origin unknown

Medical Definition

foil

noun

ˈfȯil 

: very thin sheet metal (as of gold or platinum) used especially in filling teeth