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folly

Noun
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

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The pronunciation guide uses the ARPABET phonetic system—the same system used in speech recognition and text-to-speech applications.

Vowel Examples:
AE1 = cat, bat
EH1 = bed, head
IY1 = see, me
OW1 = go, boat
UW1 = boot, do
Stress Numbers:
0 = no stress (unstressed)
1 = primary stress (loud)
2 = secondary stress (medium)
Example:
AH0 TH IY1 N AH0
= a-THEE-na (Athena)

The stressed syllable (marked with 1) is pronounced louder and clearer than others.

Quick Definition

Folly is foolishness or poor judgment, especially an unwise action, belief, or pursuit that may invite moral, comic, or tragic consequences.

Detailed Definition
This is a literary word for unwise or self-destructive behavior. In moral tales, it often names the kind of bad judgment that leads to ruin.
Example
Example in poetry:
“So heed this tale of folly’s cost” presents folly as reckless lack of wisdom; “His folly was to trust the flattering sea”; “The poem turns youthful folly into grief”; “From folly’s bright beginning came regret”
Additional Notes
Although understandable, “folly” is a more literary and old-fashioned noun than the everyday words readers usually use.; Found in the poem, The Pardoner's Tale by Richard
Also Known As
Foolishness Absurdity Nonsense Folly of Youth
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