foolhardiness

/ˈfulˌhɑɹ.di.nəs/

//ˈfulˌhɑɹ.di.nəs// noun

"foolhardiness" is a 13-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“foolhardiness” is outside the top-ranked English vocabulary, used as a noun - the kind of word writers most often double-check.

Unranked
below top-frequency English
13
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - The quality of being foolhardy.

Key facts for foolhardiness
PropertyValue
Headwordfoolhardiness
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈfulˌhɑɹ.di.nəs/
Letters13
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “foolhardiness” sits in English frequency

foolhardiness falls outside the top-100,000 ranked English words, the long-tail zone of technical, archaic, or low-frequency vocabulary, exactly where readers second-guess spellings most.

Beyond rank #100,000. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for foolhardiness is 13 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈfulˌhɑɹ.di.nəs/. It sits outside the most-frequent rank tiers, which is often why uncommon words generate more spelling variants per reader. The dominant gloss from Wiktionary reads: "The quality of being foolhardy.".

foolhardiness has no tracked misspelling variants, and the word's spelling is regular enough that our generator found nothing worth flagging. Our confusable-pair dataset has no match for it, which typically means the spelling is too distinctive to be mistaken for another word.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English foolhardynesse; equivalent to foolhardy + -ness. The correct English form is foolhardiness, spelled F-O-O-L-H-A-R-D-I-N-E-S-S.

Definition

  1. 1
    The quality of being foolhardy.

Etymology

From Middle English foolhardynesse; equivalent to foolhardy + -ness.

This word in other languages

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "foolhardiness"?
"foolhardiness" is spelled F-O-O-L-H-A-R-D-I-N-E-S-S. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈfulˌhɑɹ.di.nəs/.
What does "foolhardiness" mean?
As a noun, "foolhardiness" means: The quality of being foolhardy.
How do you pronounce "foolhardiness"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "foolhardiness" is /ˈfulˌhɑɹ.di.nəs/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "foolhardiness"?
From Middle English foolhardynesse; equivalent to foolhardy + -ness. See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Using “foolhardiness”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct English spelling is F-O-O-L-H-A-R-D-I-N-E-S-S - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /ˈfulˌhɑɹ.di.nəs/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words
Data Source

Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list