foolhardy

/ˈfuːlhɑːdi/

//ˈfuːlhɑːdi// adj

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

"foolhardy" is a 9-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“foolhardy” has 14 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #48,753. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#48,753
frequency rank, English
2,507
“F” headwords
14
tracked misspellings

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Marked by unthinking recklessness with disregard for danger; boldly rash; hotheaded.

Corpus desk

Index EN-foolhardy · foolhardy · English

foolhardy · rank #48,753 · 14 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #48,753
  • LEN-LONG 9 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-HIGH 14 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,507
  • PHOTO-FINISH fondant

Nearest frequency peer: fondant (-1 rank slots)

Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Rank peers near misspelling magnet “foolhardy”

Same rarity band: useful when a typo lands on a peer headword

corpus weight

What this shows “foolhardy” sits among these FrequencyWords peers; misspelling depth is tracked separately in the edit-distance chart.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for foolhardy
PropertyValue
Headwordfoolhardy
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/ˈfuːlhɑːdi/
Letters9
Frequency rank#48,753
Misspellings tracked14
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “foolhardy”

Word frequency stretches from the small set of words we reach for constantly (left) out to the long tail barely used once in a while (right).foolhardylands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

The axis is logarithmic, with each marked tick roughly ten times rarer than the last. Same rarity band neighbours include “fondant” (#48,752), “Fortaleza” (#48,754), “floundering” (#48,751). Among 2,507 “F” headwords, “foolhardy” is #48,753. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 14 spelling variants around foolhardy (IPA /ˈfuːlhɑːdi/), anadjective. Corpus frequency is #48,753 among 2,507 “F” headwords. Dominant gloss: "Marked by unthinking recklessness with disregard for danger; boldly rash; hotheaded.".

Our generated misspelling index lists 14 likely wrong-spelling variants for foolhardy, with forms such as "ffoolhardy", "folhardy", and "folohardy". Every one of these variants traces to a single-character edit -- an added or dropped letter, a swapped consonant, or a vowel swap -- the kind of slip a spell-checker is built to catch. It is not paired with a close-neighbour confusable in our dataset, suggesting its spelling stands apart enough that readers rarely confuse it with something else.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English folehardy, foolhardi, folherdi, from Old French fol hardi (“foolishly bold”), from Old French fol (“foolish, silly; insane, mad”) (from Latin follis (“bellows; purse, sack; inflated ball; belly, paunch”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-Europ… The correct English form is foolhardy, spelled F-O-O-L-H-A-R-D-Y.

Definition

  1. 1
    Marked by unthinking recklessness with disregard for danger; boldly rash; hotheaded.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how foolhardy appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. The master's pulse stood still, and he stared helplessly. The buzz of study ceased. The pupils wondered if this fool-hardy boy had lost his mind.
  2. In the middle distance several foolhardy souls in wet suits were surfing toward some foamy outbursts on the rocky headland; nearer in, a scattering of paddlers was being continually and, it seemed, happily engulfed by explosive waves.

Etymology

From Middle English folehardy, foolhardi, folherdi, from Old French fol hardi (“foolishly bold”), from Old French fol (“foolish, silly; insane, mad”) (from Latin follis (“bellows; purse, sack; inflated ball; belly, paunch”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *bʰelǵʰ- (“to swell”)) + Old French hardi (“durable, hardy, tough”) (past tense of hardir (“to harden”), from the unattested Frankish *hartjan, from Proto-Germanic *harduz (“hard; brave”)), equivalent to fool + hardy. Compare fool-bold, fool-large, etc.

Synonyms

bolddaringfoolishirresponsiblerashreckless

This word in other languages

temerario(Español)tête brûlée(Français)töricht(Deutsch)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • ffoolhardy
  • folhardy
  • folohardy
  • foohlardy
  • foolahrdy
  • foolhadry
  • foolharddy
  • foolhardyy
  • foolharrdy
  • foolharyd
  • foolhhardy
  • foolhrady
  • foollhardy
  • ofolhardy

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of foolhardy - counted as single-character edits (an insertion, a deletion, or a substituted letter). The larger the bar, the easier the typo is to spot; one-edit slips are the ones that sneak past readers.

ffoolhardy1folhardy1folohardy2foohlardy2foolahrdy2foolhadry2foolharddy1foolhardyy1
Edit distance from "foolhardy"

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "foolhardy"?
"foolhardy" is spelled F-O-O-L-H-A-R-D-Y. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈfuːlhɑːdi/.
What does "foolhardy" mean?
As an adjective, "foolhardy" means: Marked by unthinking recklessness with disregard for danger; boldly rash; hotheaded.
What are common misspellings of "foolhardy"?
Common misspellings include "ffoolhardy", "folhardy", "folohardy", "foohlardy", "foolahrdy". The correct spelling is "foolhardy".
How do you pronounce "foolhardy"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "foolhardy" is /ˈfuːlhɑːdi/. 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 "foolhardy"?
From Middle English folehardy, foolhardi, folherdi, from Old French fol hardi (“foolishly bold”), from Old French fol (“foolish, silly; insane, mad”) (from Latin follis (“bellows; purse, sack; inflated ball; belly, paunch”), ultimately from Proto-... 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.

Similar English words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "foolhardy", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 9 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

Fortaleza#48,754firmament#48,747extrovert#48,738greenback#48,781

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (14 here; floor ≥5).

dysphoria14 variantsdepressant14 variantsdecathlon14 variantscytotoxic14 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list