Word Confusion: Foul versus Fowl

Posted November 28, 2013 by Kathy Davie in Author Resources, Self-Editing, Word Confusions, Writing

Revised as of
19 Nov 2022

Some of these links may be affiliate links, and I will earn a small percentage, if you should buy it. It does not affect the price you pay.

By fair means or fowl, er, foul, we’ll feast today! It sort of depends on when you got the turkey out of the freezer, and if you remembered to haul out the gizzards and livers and hearts from its cavity, lest you foul the bird cooking it with those innards.

Word Confusions . . .

. . . started as my way of dealing with a professional frustration with properly spelled words that were out of context in manuscripts I was editing as well as books I was reviewing. It evolved into a sharing of information with y’all. I’m hoping you’ll share with us words that have been a bête noire for you from either end.

If you found this post on “Foul versus Fowl” interesting, consider tweeting it to your friends. Subscribe to KD Did It, if you’d like to track this post for future updates.

Return to top

Foul	Fowl
Nook Logan Foul Ball by yomanimus on FlickrMattingly23 at en.wikipedia under the CC BY 2.0 license, via Wikimedia Commons. — Nook Logan, of the Erie SeaWolves, hitting a foul ball during a game against the Reading Phillies on July 2, 2006.	Turkey is Yathin S Krishnappa’s own work under the CC BY-SA 3.0 license, via Wikimedia Commons. — A turkey, on the hoof, so to speak
Part of Grammar:
Adverb; Adjective; Noun; Verb, intransitive & transitive Noun for the plural: fouls Gerund: fouling Third person present verb: fouls Past tense or past participle: fouled Present participle: fouling	Noun Plural: fowl, fowls, domestic fowls Gerund: fowling
Adverb: Unfairly Contrary to the rules [Sports] In foul territory Adjective: Offensive to the senses, especially through having a disgusting smell or taste or being unpleasantly soiled [Informal] Very disagreeable or unpleasant [Of the weather] Wet and stormy [Sailing; of wind or tide] Opposed to one’s desired course Wicked or immoral [Of language] obscene or profane Done contrary to the rules of a sport Containing or charged with noxious matter Polluted [foul with] clogged or choked with [Nautical; of a rope or anchor] Entangled [Nautical; of a ship’s bottom] Encrusted with algae, barnacles, or other marine growth [Printing; of a first copy or proof] Defaced by corrections Noun: [Sports] An unfair or invalid stroke or piece of play, especially one involving interference with an opponent A collision or entanglement in riding, rowing, or running Short for foul ball [Informal, dated] A disease in the feet of cattle Verb, intransitive: Become entangled in this way Verb, transitive: Make foul or dirty Pollute Disgrace or dishonor [Of an animal] Make something dirty with excrement [Of a person; foul oneself] defecate involuntarily [Sports] Commit a foul against an opponent [Baseball] Hit a foul ball [Of a ship] Collide with or interfere with the passage of another Cause a cable, anchor, or other object to become entangled or jammed	A gallinaceous bird kept chiefly for its eggs and flesh A domestic cock or hen The domestic fowl is descended from the wild red junglefowl of Southeast Asia Any other domesticated bird kept for its eggs or flesh, e.g., the turkey, duck, goose, and guineafowl The flesh of birds, especially of the domestic cock or hen, as food Poultry Birds collectively, especially as the quarry of hunters [Archaic] A bird
Examples:
Adverb: If a batter hits a bunt foul with two strikes, he is out. Adjective: What is that foul odor? I can’t stand his foul breath. The news had put Michelle in a foul mood. Murder Most Foul is an anthology including Agatha Christie, Dorothy Sayers, and W. Somerset Maugham. Kicking, tripping, jumping, charging, or tackling an opponent in a manner considered to be careless, reckless, or using excessive force is considered a foul. This swampy water is foul. The land was foul with weeds. Noun: The bottom is fouled. It’s a foul! The ball is a foul. Verb, intransitive: It fouled. That compost heap has fouled! The pipes fouled. Verb, transitive: It fouled the line. Factories that fouled the atmosphere. Those birds are fouling the water tank. Make sure that your pet never fouls the sidewalk. Carter fouled into the glove of Boggs. Watch out for driftwood which might foul up the engine.	George keeps fowl. We always eat some sort of fowl for Thanksgiving. Fowl are either gamefowl or waterfowl. Helen likes a variety of fowl: hens, ducks, quail, and geese.
Derivatives:
Adjective: foul-mouthed, foul-smelling, foul-tasting, foul-tempered, fouler, foulest, overfoul, unfoul Adverb: foully, overfoully Noun: foul-up, fouled, foulness, overfoulness	Noun: fowler
Phrasal Verb
foul out foul something up foul up
History of the Word:
Old English fūl, is of Germanic origin and related to the Old Norse fúll, meaning foul, the Dutch vuil meaning dirty, and the German faul meaning rotten, lazy. From an Indo-European root shared by the Latin pus, the Greek puos meaning pus, and the Latin putere meaning to stink.	Old English fugol and originally the general term for a bird. It’s of Germanic origin and related to the Dutch vogel and the German Vogel.

Return to top

C’mon, get it out of your system, bitch, whine, moan . . . which words are your pet peeves? Also, please note that I try to be as accurate as I can, but mistakes happen or I miss something. Email me if you find errors, so I can fix them . . . and we’ll all benefit!

Satisfy your curiosity about other Word Confusions on its homepage or more generally explore the index of self-editing posts. You may also want to explore Book Layout & Formatting Ideas, Formatting Tips, Grammar Explanations, Linguistics, Publishing Tips, the Properly Punctuated, Writing Ideas and Resources, and Working Your Website.

Return to top