*SET-U

English word origin

Etymology of fool

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *bʰelǵʰ-der. Latin follis Old French folbor. Middle English fol English fool From Middle English fol (“fool”), from Old French fol (cf. modern French fou (“mad”)) from Latin follis. Dou

3 source sectionsExtended source reportWiktionary original ↗
In this entry · 3 source sections

The source etymologies

Wiktionary via Kaikki / Wiktextract

The source reports below are imported and unreviewed by *SET-U. Separate numbered origins and differing source variants are preserved; agreement within this extraction is not independent corroboration.

Source etymology 1 · variant 1/2

Original entry ↗
adj

Foolish.

verb

To trick; to deceive. · To act in an idiotic manner; to act foolishly. · To make a fool of; to make act the fool.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *bʰelǵʰ-der. Latin follis Old French folbor. Middle English fol English fool From Middle English fol (“fool”), from Old French fol (cf. modern French fou (“mad”)) from Latin follis. Doublet of fals and follis. Displaced native Old English dwæs.

Relationships mentioned by the source

These are extracted mentions, not a timeline or a verified sequence of immediate parents.

  • Inherited-form mentionfolenm
  • Derivation mentionfolfro
  • Cognate mentionfoufr
  • Derivation mentionfollisla
  • Doublet mentionfalsen
  • Doublet mentionfollisen
  • Cognate mentiondwæsang
Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

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      "expansion": "Etymology tree\nProto-Indo-European *bʰelǵʰ-der.\nLatin follis\nOld French folbor.\nMiddle English fol\nEnglish fool\n[Appendix:Glossary#loanword|Borrowed]] from\", \"terms\" : [ { \"children\" : [ { \"terms\" : [ { \"children\" : [ { \"keyword_abbrev\" : \"der.\", \"keyword_label\" : \"Derived from\", \"terms\" : [ { \"children\" : [ ], \"lang_name\" : \"Proto-Indo-European\", \"term\" : \"*bʰelǵʰ-\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"ine-pro\" } ], \"keyword\" : \"derived\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Latin\", \"term\" : \"follis\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"la\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Old French\", \"term\" : \"fol\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"fro\" } ], \"keyword\" : \"bor\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Middle English\", \"term\" : \"fol\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"enm\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"English\", \"term\" : \"fool\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"en\" }\" data-lang=\"en\" data-title=\"fool\">"
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      "name": "inh",
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        "4": "",
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      },
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    },
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      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "fro",
        "3": "fol"
      },
      "expansion": "Old French fol"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "fr",
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      },
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    },
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      "fol",
      "fol#Old_French"
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      "fol",
      "fol#Middle_English"
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      "fol",
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      "fol",
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    ],
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    ],
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      "follis",
      "follis#Latin"
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        "Foolish."
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Source etymology 1 · variant 2/2

Original entry ↗
noun

A person with poor judgment or little intelligence. · A jester; a person whose role was to entertain a sovereign and the court (or lower personages). · A stock character typified by unintelligence, naïveté or lucklessness, usually as a form of comic relief; often used as a source of insight or pathos for the audience, as such characters are generally less bound by social expectations. · Someone who has been made a fool of or tricked; dupe.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *bʰelǵʰ-der. Latin follis Old French folbor. Middle English fol English fool From Middle English fol (“fool”), from Old French fol (cf. modern French fou (“mad”)) from Latin follis. Doublet of fals and follis. Displaced native Old English dwæs.

Relationships mentioned by the source

These are extracted mentions, not a timeline or a verified sequence of immediate parents.

  • Inherited-form mentionfolenm
  • Derivation mentionfolfro
  • Cognate mentionfoufr
  • Derivation mentionfollisla
  • Doublet mentionfalsen
  • Doublet mentionfollisen
  • Cognate mentiondwæsang

This page abbreviates 3 auxiliary source items. The etymology narrative is not shortened. Omission counts are available in the audit fields below; consult the original for complete auxiliary material.

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

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    },
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      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "fro",
        "3": "fol"
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    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "fr",
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      "lang_code": "tpi",
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Source etymology 2

Original entry ↗
noun

A type of dessert made of puréed fruit and custard or cream.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

From French fouler (“to trample”).

Relationships mentioned by the source

These are extracted mentions, not a timeline or a verified sequence of immediate parents.

  • Derivation mentionfoulerfr · to trample
Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

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Where this record stops

This page does not supply an independently verified sound-change sequence, first-use manuscript or complete family tree unless a cited analysis explicitly establishes one. Missing detail here is a limit of this record—not a claim that humanity knows nothing more.

An older meaning does not determine what a word must mean today. Follow the sources, preserve disagreements, and keep ancestry separate from interpretation.

Contribute located evidence for fool →

Source and snapshot

Imported from Wiktionary contributors; extracted by Tatu Ylonen / Wiktextract / Kaikki.org. Selected fields are reformatted and grouped; wording, source identity and etymology sections are retained. CC-BY-SA-4.0 applies to the imported source material.

Dump: 2026-10-01 · Extracted: 2026-10-30. These are snapshot dates, not the word’s first attestation or the page’s revision date.

Source entry and bibliography ↗Wiktionary revision history ↗Acquisition and rights ledger
Machine-source provenance
Source SHA-256
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Import run
73216b9a9b78ed3830994bf853103716f5a4dc57099e371e9f8fdc468facca26
Permanent entry ID
w-Zm9vbA