foray
/ˈfɔɹ.eɪ/noun, verb
foray is spelled F-O-R-A-Y: 5 letters and 2 syllables. It appears 1.1 times per million words in written English, the 27,462nd most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, foray means “A sudden or irregular incursion in border warfare; hence, any irregular incursion for war or spoils; a raid” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of foray is forays.
How many letters and syllables are in foray?
| Letters | 5: F-O-R-A-Y |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 1.1 times per million words; the 27,462nd most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Rhymes with |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is foray?
Foray appears 1.1 times per million words in written English, the 27,462nd most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce foray?
- UK /ˈfɒɹ.eɪ/
- US /ˈfɔɹ.eɪ/
- /ˈfɑɹ.eɪ/
Foray has 2 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-foray.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with foray?
One word on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as foray from its last stressed vowel (/ɔɹeɪ/):
Computed by PlainSpell from the pronunciations in the English Wiktionary (dump of September 2, 2026): a rhyme shares every sound from the last stressed vowel to the end; ordered by written frequency (wordfreq 3.1).
Forms of foray
- forays plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- foraying participle, present
- forayed participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does foray mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
A sudden or irregular incursion in border warfare; hence, any irregular incursion for war or spoils; a raid.
- 2
A brief excursion or attempt, especially outside one's accustomed sphere.
verb
- 1
To participate in a foray.
- 2
To do or attempt something outside one's typical area of expertise.
- 3
archaicTo scour an area for goods as part of a foray.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Foray in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | incursion , fourrager |
| German | plötzlicher Überfall, überraschender Überfall , kurzer Ausfall, Streifzug |
| Portuguese | incursão, investida, aposta |
| Spanish | incursión |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does foray come from?
From Middle English forrayen (“to pillage”), a back-formation of forrayour, forreour, forrier (“raider, pillager”), from Old French forrier, fourrier, a derivative of fuerre (“provender, fodder, straw”), from Frankish *fōdar (“fodder, sheath”), from Proto-Germanic *fōdrą (“fodder, feed, sheath”), from Proto-Indo-European *patrom (“fodder”), *pat- (“to feed”), *pāy- (“to guard, graze, feed”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).