folly

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• General-American: /ˈfɑli/
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• Received-Pronunciation: /ˈfɒli/
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• US: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
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• rhymes with -ɒli
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• CMU ARPABET: F AA1 L IY0 Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.
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Inherited from Middle English folie, from Old French folie (“madness”), from the adjective fol (“mad, insane”).

Uncertain. The most common theory is that term primarily denotes a clump of trees and relates to French feuille, feuillée and English foliage; it has also been suggested that it refers to some perceived connection or resemblance of the named place to an architectural folly, but many places so named have no architectural follies and cannot be named directly for them.

109 source translations are retained for this English entry.

• Armenian: հիմարություն (himarutʻyun) — foolishness
• Bulgarian: глупост (glupost) — foolishness
• Catalan: bogeria — foolishness
• Catalan: follia — foolishness
• Dutch: dwaasheid — foolishness
• Dutch: domheid — foolishness
• Dutch: stommiteit — foolishness
• Esperanto: malsaĝeco — foolishness
• Finnish: mielettömyys — foolishness
• Finnish: hulluus — foolishness
• Finnish: typeryys — foolishness
• French: folie — foolishness
• French: sottise — foolishness
• Galician: folía — foolishness
• German: Torheit — foolishness
• German: Narrheit — foolishness
• German: Dummheit — foolishness
• German: Tollheit — foolishness
• German: Aberwitz — foolishness
• German: Verrücktheit — foolishness
• Gothic: 𐌳𐍅𐌰𐌻𐌹𐌸𐌰 (dwaliþa) — foolishness
• Gothic: 𐌿𐌽𐍆𐍂𐍉𐌳𐌴𐌹 (unfrōdei) — foolishness
• Ancient Greek: ἀφροσύνη (aphrosúnē) — foolishness
• Ancient Greek: μωρία (mōría) — foolishness
• Ancient Greek: ἄνοια (ánoia) — foolishness
• Hebrew: איוולת \ אִוֶּלֶת (ivélet) — foolishness
• Hungarian: butaság — foolishness
• Hungarian: ostobaság — foolishness
• Icelandic: kjánaskapur — foolishness
• Icelandic: dáraskapur — foolishness
• Irish: díchiall — foolishness
• Irish: amaidí — foolishness
• Italian: follia — foolishness
• Italian: stravaganza — foolishness
• Latin: stultitia — foolishness
• Latin: fatuitas — foolishness
• Latvian: neprātība — foolishness
• Latvian: neprātīgums — foolishness
• Lingala: liboma — foolishness
• Macedonian: глу́пост (glúpost) — foolishness
• Macedonian: лу́дост (lúdost) — foolishness
• Macedonian: будала́штина (budaláština) — foolishness
• Macedonian: безу́мие (bezúmie) — foolishness
• Manx: anchreeaght — foolishness
• Māori: wawau — foolishness
• Middle English: folie — foolishness
• Plautdietsch: Domheit — foolishness
• Polish: głupota — foolishness
• Portuguese: bobeira — foolishness
• Romanian: prostie — foolishness
• Russian: глу́пость (glúpostʹ) — foolishness
• Russian: недомы́слие (nedomýslije) — foolishness
• Russian: дурь (durʹ) — foolishness
• Russian: блажь (blažʹ) — foolishness
• Russian: безрассу́дство (bezrassúdstvo) — foolishness
• Scottish Gaelic: amaideachd — foolishness
• Scottish Gaelic: amaideas — foolishness
• Serbo-Croatian: лу̏до̄ст — foolishness
• Serbo-Croatian: lȕdōst — foolishness
• Spanish: locura — foolishness
• Spanish: insensatez — foolishness
• Spanish: necedad — foolishness
• Spanish: nesciencia — foolishness
• Spanish: nescedad — foolishness
• Swedish: dåraktighet — foolishness
• Swedish: dårskap — foolishness
• Bulgarian: безразсъдство (bezrazsǎdstvo) — thoughtless action
• Bulgarian: глупост (glupost) — thoughtless action
• Catalan: capritx — thoughtless action
• Catalan: caprici — thoughtless action
• Chinese Mandarin: 蠢事 (chǔnshì) — thoughtless action
• Finnish: hullutus — thoughtless action
• Finnish: hölmöily — thoughtless action
• Finnish: hömpötys — thoughtless action
• Galician: folía — thoughtless action
• German: Fahrlässigkeit — thoughtless action
• German: Eselei — thoughtless action
• German: Unsinn — thoughtless action
• German: Verrücktheit — thoughtless action
• German: Wahnwitz — thoughtless action
• Hungarian: könnyelműség — thoughtless action
• Japanese: 愚行 (gukō) — thoughtless action
• Latvian: neprātība — thoughtless action
• Macedonian: непроми́сленост (nepromíslenost) — thoughtless action
• Middle English: folie — thoughtless action
• Polish: głupstwo — thoughtless action
• Russian: безрассу́дство (bezrassúdstvo) — thoughtless action
• Russian: при́хоть (príxotʹ) — thoughtless action
• Russian: блажь (blažʹ) — thoughtless action
• Russian: безрассу́дный посту́пок (bezrassúdnyj postúpok) — thoughtless action
• Russian: глу́пый посту́пок (glúpyj postúpok) — thoughtless action
• Scottish Gaelic: amaideachd — thoughtless action
• Serbo-Croatian: лу̏до̄ст — thoughtless action
• Serbo-Croatian: lȕdōst — thoughtless action
• Bulgarian: архитекту́рна приу́мица (arhitektúrna priúmica) — fanciful building
• Catalan: capritx — fanciful building
• Dutch: folly — fanciful building
• Dutch: follie — fanciful building
• French: folie — fanciful building
• German: Zierbau — fanciful building
• German: Prunkbau — fanciful building
• Icelandic: kenjahof — fanciful building
• Italian: stravaganza — fanciful building
• Italian: unicum — fanciful building
• Italian: eccentricità — fanciful building
• Italian: edificio decorativo — fanciful building
• Romanian: clădire ornamentală — fanciful building
• Spanish: capricho — fanciful building
• Swedish: fåfänga — fanciful building