Fool
Origin
Middle English, from Anglo-French fol, from Late Latin follis, from Latin, bellows, bag; akin to Old High German bolla blister, balg bag
Definitions
- 1: a person lacking in judgment or prudence
- 2a : a retainer formerly kept in great households to provide casual entertainment and commonly dressed in motley with cap, bells, and bauble
- b : one who is victimized or made to appear foolish : dupe
- 3a : a harmlessly deranged person or one lacking in common powers of understanding
- b : one with a marked propensity or fondness for something <a dancing fool> <a fool for candy>
4: a cold dessert of pureed fruit mixed with whipped cream or custard
Description
Foolishness is the lack of wisdom. In this sense it differs from stupidity, which is the lack of intelligence. An act of foolishness is sometimes referred to as a folly.
Foolishness and wisdom are contrasted in Paul's letter to the Corinthians. He condemns intellectual arrogance and advocates a humble attitude of foolishness in which it is then possible to learn. Plato likewise said, "He is the wisest man who knows himself to be ill-equipped for the study of wisdom" but Paul makes a distinction between wisdom and the reason of the Greeks.
