foul

foul [foul]

adj.

[ME < OE ful, akin to Ger faul, rotten, lazy < IE base * pū-, * pu-, to stink (< ? exclamation of disgust) > L putere, to rot, Gr pyon, PUS]

1. so offensive to the senses as to cause disgust; stinking; loathsome [a foul odor]

2. extremely dirty or impure; disgustingly filthy

3. full of or blocked up with dirt or foreign objects [a foul pipe]

4. putrid; rotten: said of food

5. not decent; obscene; profane [foul language]

6. very wicked; abominable [a foul murder]

7. not clear; stormy; unfavorable [foul weather, winds, etc.]

8. tangled or snarled; caught [a foul rope]

9. not according to the rules of a game; unfair, by either accident or intention

10. treacherous; dishonest

11. [Now Dial., Chiefly Brit.] ugly

12. Informal unpleasant, disagreeable, etc.

☆ 13. Baseball of or having to do with the part of the field that lies outside the foul lines: see FAIR¹ (adj. 15), FAIR BALL

14. Printing containing errors or marked with changes [foul copy or proof]

adv.

1. in a foul way

2. Baseball in or into the part of the field that lies outside the foul lines

n.

anything foul; specif.,

a) a collision of boats, contestants, etc.

b) an infraction of the rules, as of a game or sport

c) Baseball FOUL BALL

vt.

1. to make foul; dirty; soil; defile

2. to dishonor or disgrace

3. to impede or obstruct; specif.,

a) to fill up; encrust; choke [to foul a drain with grease]

b) to cover (the bottom of a ship) with barnacles, seaweed, etc.

c) to entangle; catch [a rope fouled in the shrouds]

4. to make a foul against in a contest or game

☆ 5. Baseball to bat (the ball) so that it falls outside the foul lines

vi.

1. to become dirty, filthy, or rotten

2. to be clogged or choked

3. to become tangled

4. to break the rules of a game

5. Baseball to bat the ball so that it falls outside the foul lines or is caught there [to foul to the third baseman]

SYN.- DIRTY

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☆ foul out

1. Baseball to be retired as batter by the catch of a foul ball

2. Basketball to be disqualified from further play for having committed a specified number of personal fouls

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☆ foul up

Informal to make a mess of; make disordered or confused; bungle

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run foul of or fall foul of

1. to collide with or become entangled in

2. to get into trouble with

foully

adv.

foulness

n.