- (superl.) Scurrilous; obscene or profane; abusive; as, foul words; foul language.
- (n.) See Foul ball, under Foul, a.
- (superl.) Loathsome; disgusting; as, a foul disease.
- (superl.) Covered with or containing, extraneous matter which is injurious, noxious, offensive or obstructive; filthy; dirty; not clean; polluted; nasty; defiled; as, a foul cloth; foul hands; a foul chimney; foul air; a ship's bottom is foul when overgrown with barnacles; a gun becomes foul from repeated firing; a well is foul with polluted water.
- (n.) An entanglement; a collision, as in a boat race.
- (v.t.) To incrust (the bore of a gun) with burnt powder in the process of firing.
- (n.) A bird.
- (v.i.) To become entagled, as ropes; to come into collision with something; as, the two boats fouled.
- (superl.) Ugly; homely; poor.
- (superl.) Not favorable; unpropitious; not fair or advantageous; as, a foul wind; a foul road; cloudy or rainy; stormy; not fair; -- said of the weather, sky, etc.
- (v.t.) To entangle, so as to impede motion; as, to foul a rope or cable in paying it out; to come into collision with; as, one boat fouled the other in a race.
- (v.i.) To become clogged with burnt powder in the process of firing, as a gun.
- (superl.) Having freedom of motion interfered with by collision or entanglement; entangled; -- opposed to clear; as, a rope or cable may get foul while paying it out.
- (superl.) Not conformed to the established rules and customs of a game, conflict, test, etc.; unfair; dishonest; dishonorable; cheating; as, foul play.
- (v.t.) To cover (a ship's bottom) with anything that impered its sailing; as, a bottom fouled with barnacles.
- (v.t.) To make filthy; to defile; to daub; to dirty; to soil; as, to foul the face or hands with mire.
- (superl.) Hateful; detestable; shameful; odious; wretched.
- (n.) In various games or sports, an act done contrary to the rules; a foul stroke, hit, play or the like.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary
| APA | Webster's. (2011). Foul. Retrieved September 24, 2026, from http://smartdefine.org/foul/definitions/2009832 |
| Chicago | Webster's. 2011. "Foul" http://smartdefine.org/foul/definitions/2009832 (accessed September 24, 2026). |
| Harvard | Webster's 2011, Foul, Smart Define, viewed 24 September, 2026, <http://smartdefine.org/foul/definitions/2009832>. |
| MLA | Webster's. "Foul" 27 May 2011. Web. 24 September 2026. <http://smartdefine.org/foul/definitions/2009832> |