Meaning & use
foil
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Meanings
nouncountable
A person or thing whose different qualities make another person or thing's qualities stand out more clearly by contrast.
Grammar: Usually followed by for or to: a foil for the hero.
Patterns
- a foil for someone
- a foil to someone
The quiet sidekick serves as a perfect foil for the loud, boastful detective.
Her calm manner was a foil to her brother's nervous energy.
In the novel, the cheerful neighbor acts as a foil, making the narrator's gloom more obvious.
noununcountable
A very thin, flexible sheet of metal, used for wrapping food or covering things.
Grammar: Not counted directly: a sheet of foil, not a foil.
Patterns
- a sheet of foil
- wrapped in foil
Cover the dish with foil before putting it in the oven.
He wrapped the leftover sandwich in foil.
The chocolate came in shiny gold foil.
verbtransitive
To stop someone's plan or attempt from succeeding, often at the last moment.
Grammar: Takes an object: foil a robbery, foil the thieves.
Patterns
- foil something
- foil someone's plan
A passing police car foiled the burglars' escape.
Heavy rain foiled our plans for an outdoor wedding.
Security staff foiled an attempt to smuggle the painting out.
nouncountablesport
A light, thin-bladed sword with a blunt tip, used in the sport of fencing.
Grammar: A sport term: she fences with a foil.
She practices three times a week with her foil.
The foil is the lightest of the three fencing weapons.
Word forms
| plural | foils |
|---|---|
| third person singular | foils |
| past tense | foiled |
| past participle | foiled |
| -ing form | foiling |
Common combinations
- a perfect foil
- The dry-witted lawyer is a perfect foil for his excitable client.
- serve as a foil
- The younger sister serves as a foil to the serious heroine.
- foil a plot
- Agents foiled a plot to disrupt the election.
- foil an attempt
- A locked gate foiled his attempt to sneak in.
- aluminum foil
- Line the baking tray with aluminum foil.
- foiled again
- Foiled again by a missed train, she walked home.
Synonyms and how they differ
- contrast
- Contrast is a general word for any difference, whereas a foil is a specific person or thing placed beside another to highlight it.
- thwart
- Thwart is very close to the verb foil but sounds a little more formal and stresses blocking someone's wishes.
- frustrate
- Frustrate often focuses on the person's disappointment, while foil focuses on the plan being stopped.
- counterpart
- A counterpart is an equivalent person or thing in another group, not one chosen to show a difference.
Opposites
Word family
- foiled adjective
- prevented from succeeding
- tinfoil noun
- thin metal sheet for wrapping, in everyday speech
- foiling noun
- the act of stopping a plan
Commonly confused: foil or foul?
foil vs foul
Foul sounds similar in some accents but means dirty, unpleasant, or an unfair move in sport; it has nothing to do with blocking or contrast.
Practice
The cheerful, outgoing roommate is a ___ to the narrator's shy nature, making the shyness easier to notice.
Choose one answer.
A foil is a contrasting character that highlights another's traits. Foul, fuel, and fold are real words but do not fit the meaning.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “foil”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.