Definitions
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
- n. A stupid or foolish person.
- adj. Extremely foolish or stupid.
Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia
- n. A silly fool; a trifler: also used attributively.
- n. The Jamaican rainbird, Saurothera vetula. Though this is one of the ground-cuckoos (see
Saurotherinæ ), it is also at home in trees and bushes, where it perches with ease. It is intermediate in some respects between the chaparral-cock and the common rain-crows of the United States. but is much larger than the latter, and, like these, is supposed to foretell rain by its cries. The coloration is mostly a toned gray or drab, but with the breast rufous, and the ample fan-shaped tail framed in black and white. - To act foolishly find triflingly.
Wiktionary
GNU Webster's 1913
- n. A great fool; a trifler.
WordNet 3.0
- n. a person who lacks good judgment
Etymologies
- Tom (nickname of Thomas) + fool. (American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition)
Examples
“Dalrymple really meant what he had said and would stick to it, she need not mind being called a tomfool by her mother.”
“If Dalrymple really meant what he had said and would stick to it, she need not mind being called a tomfool by her mother.”
“What you want to do is get behind my tomfool words and get a feel of the man that's behind them.”
“And you don't need much strategy, so you don't have to buy one of those tomfool microphone headsets.”
“Only one of them, a little man with a wrathful air, in a sheepskin coat wide open, and a lambswool cap pulled right over his eyes, on coming up to the gingerbread man, suddenly inquired: ‘How much is the gingerbread, you tomfool?’”
“I gave each a mocking salute, driven by I don't know what tomfool bravado.”
“Why do you let that great tomfool call you by your first name, Mary?" he demanded, almost before the front door was shut.”
“I had just got as far as that, when the gentleman said "Pshaw!" and then he told me to run off, and not come into the church again to tomfool -- that's what he said.”
“I don't like to apply such a tomfool word to anything, but observe how all this has come about.”
“He'd got hold of some tomfool idiotic ideas about the situation in India.”
Lists
These user-created lists contain the word ‘tomfool’.
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Gapeseeds and Muckworms - Compound De...
A list of compound derogatory names such as gapeseed, muckworm and lickspittle. Your one-word contributions to this list are welcome.
See sionnach's list derogatory terms I should use ...gapeseed, muckworm, lickspittle, makeweight, bootlicker, backscratcher, apple-polisher, backslapper, brownnoser, rakeshame, yesman, freeloader and 293 more...
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WF - nominal compounds (figurative)
An extensive list I have been working on for quite some time. Feel free to add more of the kind if you miss any.
brainstorming, upside, downside, goldplating, bikeshedding, mudslinging, downgrading, headhunter, streamlining, mainstreaming, gerrymandering, frontloading and 503 more...
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Monovocalics
Words that have only one of the vowels. On this list I include only words with at least three vowels. When I first started the list, if a word had several forms, I generally listed only the one wit...
syzygy, mirific, cumulus, homolog, monocot, bedewed, jezebel, referee, bikini, minikin, locomotor, terebenthene and 2359 more...
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loonie
Inspired by Peter Reading's "Euphemisms".
crackers, potty, loony, bonkers, nutty, screwy, ga-ga, dull, strange, do-lally, dopey, silly and 83 more...
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Duped
Those who are easily duped.
cully, cull, gudgeon, gull, gull-gallant, chouse, geck, chump, fall guy, mark, fool, mug and 39 more...
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amusing insults
Words that you can use to insult people. The best was when I called my (then) bf a crumb bum (I was kidding!) and he was genuinely insulted! How the hell anyone could take that seriously, I do not ...
twitterpated, insipid, prat, twit, brat, twerp, flibbertigibbet, milquetoast, lollygagger, slubberdegullion, curmudgeon, clodhopper and 63 more...
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I'm Surrounded by Idiots
Ways to say someone is stupid, inept, etc. (nouns)
idiot, moron, ignoramus, dummy, dumbass, stupid, bonehead, meathead, featherbrain, scatterbrain, dumb, twit and 60 more...
Tweets
Looking for tweets for tomfool.
Comments
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