foul

[foul] /faʊl/
adjective, fouler, foulest.
1.
grossly offensive to the senses; disgustingly loathsome; noisome:
a foul smell.
2.
containing or characterized by offensive or noisome matter:
foul air; foul stagnant water.
3.
filthy or dirty, as places, receptacles, clothes, etc.
4.
muddy, as a road.
5.
clogged or obstructed with foreign matter:
a foul gas jet.
6.
unfavorable or stormy:
foul weather.
7.
contrary, violent, or unfavorable, as the wind.
8.
grossly offensive in a moral sense.
9.
abominable, wicked, or vile, as deeds, crime, slander, etc.
10.
scurrilous, profane, or obscene; offensive:
foul language.
11.
contrary to the rules or established usages, as of a sport or game; unfair:
a foul blow.
12.
Baseball. pertaining to a foul ball or a foul line.
13.
limited in freedom of movement by obstruction, entanglement, etc.:
a foul anchor.
14.
abounding in errors or in marks of correction, as a printer's proof, manuscript, or the like.
15.
Nautical.
  1. (of the underwater portion of a hull) encrusted and impeded with barnacles, seaweed, etc.
  2. (of a mooring place) involving inconveniences and dangers, as of colliding with vessels or other objects when swinging with the tide.
  3. (of the bottom of a body of water) affording a poor hold for an anchor (opposed to clean).
16.
North England and Scot. not fair; ugly or unattractive.
17.
Obsolete, disfigured.
adverb
18.
in a foul manner; vilely; unfairly.
19.
Baseball. into foul territory; so as to be foul:
It looked like a homer when he hit it, but it went foul.
noun
20.
something that is foul.
21.
a collision or entanglement:
a foul between two racing sculls.
22.
a violation of the rules of a sport or game:
The referee called it a foul.
23.
Baseball. foul ball.
verb (used with object)
24.
to make foul; defile; soil.
25.
to clog or obstruct, as a chimney or the bore of a gun.
26.
to collide with.
27.
to cause to become entangled or caught, as a rope.
28.
to defile; dishonor; disgrace:
His reputation had been fouled by unfounded accusations.
29.
Nautical. (of barnacles, seaweed, etc.) to cling to (a hull) so as to encumber.
30.
Baseball. to hit (a pitched ball) foul (often followed by off or away):
He fouled off two curves before being struck out on a fastball.
verb (used without object)
31.
to become foul.
32.
Nautical. to come into collision, as two boats.
33.
to become entangled or clogged:
The rope fouled.
34.
Sports. to make a foul play; give a foul blow.
35.
Baseball. to hit a foul ball.
Verb phrases
36.
foul out,
  1. Baseball. to be put out by hitting a foul ball caught on the fly by a player on the opposing team.
  2. Basketball. to be expelled from a game for having committed more fouls than is allowed.
37.
foul up, Informal. to cause confusion or disorder; bungle; spoil.
Idioms
38.
fall foul / afoul of,
  1. to collide with, as ships.
  2. to come into conflict with; quarrel.
  3. to make an attack; assault.
39.
foul one's nest, to dishonor one's own home, family, or the like.
40.
run foul / afoul of, to come into collision or controversy with:
to run foul of the press.
Origin
before 900; (adj. and noun) Middle English ful, foul, Old English fūl; cognate with Gothic fuls, Old Norse fūll, Old High German fūl; akin to Latin pūs pus, pūtēre to stink, Greek pýon pus; (adv.) Middle English fule, foule, derivative of the adj.; (v.) Middle English fulen, derivative of the adj.
Related forms
foully, adverb
overfoul, adjective
overfoully, adverb
overfoulness, noun
unfoul, adjective
unfoully, adverb
unfouled, adjective
Can be confused
foul, fowl.
Synonyms
1. repulsive, repellent. 2. fetid, putrid, stinking. 3. unclean, polluted, sullied, soiled, stained, tainted, impure. See dirty. 6. rainy, tempestuous. 7. adverse. 9. base, shameful, infamous. 10. smutty, vulgar, coarse, low. 24. sully, stain, dirty, besmirch, taint, pollute. 28. shame.
Antonyms
1. pleasant. 3, 24. clean. 5, 6. clear.
Examples from the web for foul
  • He emitted a foul odor from his tail and mouth that would stick on his victims.
  • An example of his persistency was seen in the case of foul play.
  • Neither was any evidence of foul play found in the wreckage of the aircraft.
British Dictionary definitions for foul

foul

/faʊl/
adjective
1.
offensive to the senses; revolting
2.
offensive in odour; stinking
3.
charged with or full of dirt or offensive matter; filthy
4.
(of food) putrid; rotten
5.
morally or spiritually offensive; wicked; vile
6.
obscene; vulgar: foul language
7.
not in accordance with accepted standards or established rules; unfair: to resort to foul means
8.
(esp of weather) unpleasant or adverse
9.
blocked or obstructed with dirt or foreign matter: a foul drain
10.
entangled or impeded: a foul anchor
11.
(of the bottom of a vessel) covered with barnacles and other growth that slow forward motion
12.
(informal) unsatisfactory or uninteresting; bad: a foul book
13.
(archaic) ugly
noun
14.
(sport)
  1. a violation of the rules
  2. (as modifier): a foul shot, a foul blow
15.
something foul
16.
an entanglement or collision, esp in sailing or fishing
verb
17.
to make or become dirty or polluted
18.
to become or cause to become entangled or snarled
19.
(transitive) to disgrace or dishonour
20.
to become or cause to become clogged or choked
21.
(transitive) (nautical) (of underwater growth) to cling to (the bottom of a vessel) so as to slow its motion
22.
(transitive) (sport) to commit a foul against (an opponent)
23.
(transitive) (baseball) to hit (a ball) in an illegal manner
24.
(intransitive) (sport) to infringe the rules
25.
(transitive) (of an animal, especially a dog) to defecate on: do not let your dog foul the footpath
26.
to collide with (a boat, etc)
adverb
27.
in a foul or unfair manner
28.
fall foul of
  1. to come into conflict with
  2. (nautical) to come into collision with
See also foul up
Derived Forms
foully, adverb
Word Origin
Old English fūl; related to Old Norse fūll, Gothic fūls smelling offensively, Latin pūspus, Greek puol pus
Word Origin and History for foul
adj.

Old English ful "rotten, unclean, vile, corrupt, offensive to the senses," from Proto-Germanic *fulaz (cf. Old Saxon and Old Frisian ful, Middle Dutch voul, Dutch vuil, Old High German fül, German faul, Gothic füls), from root *fu-, corresponding to PIE *pu-, perhaps from the sound made in reaction to smelling something bad (cf. Sanskrit puyati "rots, stinks," putih "foul, rotten;" Greek puon "discharge from a sore;" Latin pus "putrid matter," putere "to stink," putridus "rotten;" Lithuanian puviu "to rot").

Old English ful occasionally meant "ugly" (as contrasted with fæger (adj.), modern fair (adj.)), a sense frequently found in Middle English, and the cognate in Swedish is the usual word for "ugly." Of weather, first recorded late 14c. In the sporting sense of "irregular, unfair" it is first attested 1797, though foul play is recorded from mid-15c. Baseball sense of "out of play" attested by 1860. Foulmart was a Middle English word for "polecat" (from Old English mearð "marten").

v.

Old English fulian "to become foul, rot," from ful (see foul (adj.)). Related: Fouled; fouling.

Idioms and Phrases with foul

foul

also see:
run afoul of