Synonyms for
Folly
Definition
lack of good sense or judgment; foolishness
Synonyms & similar words
betise
wisdom
unwiseness
craziness
foolery
madness
stupidity
lunacy
foolishness
imbecility
indulgence
tomfoolery
foolishness
absurdity
idiocy
stupidity
imprudence
recklessness
irrationality
nonsense
silliness
tomfoolery
madness
insanity
unwisdom
lunacy
senselessness
inanity
idiocy
imbecility
doltishness
stupidness
Synonyms by register
Antonyms
Common collocations
- utter folly
- act of folly
- sheer folly
- youthful folly
- costly folly
- monumental folly
- pursuit of folly
Word family
Usage note
Folly often refers to a lack of good sense or judgment, particularly in actions that are extravagant or ill-advised. It can also refer to a costly or foolish undertaking.
Example sentences
- It was a great folly for me to forget my homework at home.
- His decision to quit his job without having another lined up was a folly.
- The company's expansion plans turned out to be a costly folly.
- It would be a folly to ignore the warnings of the experts.
- Her pursuit of a career in acting was dismissed as a folly by her parents.
Quotes
'The greatest folly of all is to sacrifice health for any other kind of happiness.' - Arthur Schopenhauer
'The follies which a man regrets most, in his life, are those which he didn't commit when he had the opportunity.' - Helen Rowland
'A great city, whose image dwells in the memory of man, is the type of some great idea. Rome represents conquest; Faith hovers over the towers of Jerusalem; and Athens embodies the pre-eminent quality of the antique world, Art. ' - Benjamin Disraeli