US /ˌtɑːmˈfuː.lɚ.i/ UK /ˌtɒmˈfuː.lər.i/
noun Freq #44749

Meanings

  1. 1
    noun

    playful, foolish, or nonsensical behavior or talk

    The supervisor ended the tomfoolery before anyone damaged the equipment.

Thesaurus

Synonyms
1 noun · playful, foolish, or... foolerybuffooneryhorseplaynonsense
More silliness
Opposites
seriousnessgood sense
Word family
Related forms tomfoolfooleryhigh jinks

Etymology

Formed in the early nineteenth century from tomfool + -ery, on the model of foolery. Tomfool, earlier Tom Fool, joined the common name Tom to fool and may originally have been an appellation for a professional jester.

Topics

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