1
as in stained
to make dirty
the mechanic fouled the bath towels with axle grease
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in polluted
to make unfit for use by the addition of something harmful or undesirable
industrial pollution fouling the water supply
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3
as in humiliated
to reduce to a lower standing in one's own eyes or in others' eyes
the minister was irreparably fouled by baseless rumors and allegations
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4
as in decomposed
to go through decomposition
unless you want to smell the organic refuse as it fouls, locate the compost heap away from the house
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as in contaminated
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Recent Examples of fouled
Nathan Canilao, Mercury News, 7 Aug. 2025
Daniel Sperry, Kansas City Star, 8 Sep. 2025
Matters only got more bleak in the sixth, when Rushing fouled a ball off his right shin, smoking a ball right above where his guard ended and immediately going down in pain.
—Fabian Ardaya, New York Times, 6 Sep. 2025
That might have ended in the sixth inning on Friday night when Rushing fouled a ball off his right shin, dropped to the ground in obvious pain and had to be helped from the field.
—Bill Plunkett, Oc Register, 6 Sep. 2025
But just as Indiana was on the verge of cutting the lead to a single possession, Powers fouled Clark’s former Iowa teammate Kate Martin on a 3-pointer right in front of Indiana’s bench and the second-year guard swished the shot to erupt the Chase Center crowd.
—Nathan Canilao, Mercury News, 1 Sep. 2025
With the bases loaded and an 0-2 count, Miranda fouled off several pitches.
—Jackson Thompson, FOXNews.com, 23 Aug. 2025
Gavin Sheets fell behind 0-2 and then fouled off five straight pitches before a curveball hit him in the right foot in the fourth inning.
—Kevin Acee, San Diego Union-Tribune, 20 Aug. 2025
The moment occurred in Game 2 of that World Series when Piazza fouled off a pitch from Clemens and splintered his bat in the process.
—Peter Sblendorio, New York Daily News, 9 Aug. 2025
That led to the scramble for the loose ball in which Quaintance was fouled by N'Guessan.
—Field Level Media, Reuters, 5 Feb. 2025
Verb
With the teams tied at 48 in the third quarter, guard Tiffany Hayes was fouled on a drive to the basket.
—Nathan Canilao, Mercury News, 7 Aug. 2025
Adjective
Sporting was awarded the spot kick after a video review revealed Shapi Suleymanov had been fouled while dribbling in on goal.
—Daniel Sperry, Kansas City Star, 8 Sep. 2025
Matters only got more bleak in the sixth, when Rushing fouled a ball off his right shin, smoking a ball right above where his guard ended and immediately going down in pain.
—Fabian Ardaya, New York Times, 6 Sep. 2025
That might have ended in the sixth inning on Friday night when Rushing fouled a ball off his right shin, dropped to the ground in obvious pain and had to be helped from the field.
—Bill Plunkett, Oc Register, 6 Sep. 2025
But just as Indiana was on the verge of cutting the lead to a single possession, Powers fouled Clark’s former Iowa teammate Kate Martin on a 3-pointer right in front of Indiana’s bench and the second-year guard swished the shot to erupt the Chase Center crowd.
—Nathan Canilao, Mercury News, 1 Sep. 2025
With the bases loaded and an 0-2 count, Miranda fouled off several pitches.
—Jackson Thompson, FOXNews.com, 23 Aug. 2025
Gavin Sheets fell behind 0-2 and then fouled off five straight pitches before a curveball hit him in the right foot in the fourth inning.
—Kevin Acee, San Diego Union-Tribune, 20 Aug. 2025
The moment occurred in Game 2 of that World Series when Piazza fouled off a pitch from Clemens and splintered his bat in the process.
—Peter Sblendorio, New York Daily News, 9 Aug. 2025
That led to the scramble for the loose ball in which Quaintance was fouled by N'Guessan.
—Field Level Media, Reuters, 5 Feb. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for fouled
Verb
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Inside the retro-futuristic Discoveryland area of Disneyland Paris, a full-size Star Wars X-Wing fighter sits on a silver and blue platform which looks like it has been weathered and stained from battles.—
Caroline Reid,
Forbes.com,
11 Sep. 2025
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Doing some research on other things my car needs (truly the theme for this week) and decide a seat cover would be good, since it’s been stained a bit with annoying food spills.—
R29 Team,
Refinery29,
10 Sep. 2025
Verb
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The area is significantly polluted with DDT, a chemical used as an insecticide that was banned in 1972.—
Maura Fox,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
11 Sep. 2025
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Other public speakers, like Tabitha Fader, said the reroute would cause irreparable harm if wetlands and rivers were polluted during pipeline construction or in the event of a spill.—
Laura Schulte,
jsonline.com,
4 Sep. 2025
Verb
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All that to be humiliated in the Orlando bubble?—
Mirjam Swanson,
Oc Register,
4 Sep. 2025
-
Inter Miami, clearly humiliated, let out its frustrations after the final whistle, when several Miami players, led by Luis Suarez, got into a scuffle with Seattle players.—
Michelle Kaufman,
Miami Herald,
1 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Two people discovered badly decomposed human remains while doing a walkthrough of a home for sale in Ohio, police told news outlets.—
Mitchell Willetts,
Kansas City Star,
11 Sep. 2025
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Their remains were either so badly decomposed to be identified, or perhaps their dog tags were missing.—
Jim Clash,
Forbes.com,
11 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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Both options are naturally gluten-free, but oats are more likely to be cross-contaminated with gluten.—
Mira Miller,
Verywell Health,
15 Sep. 2025
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Two children who became ill showed symptoms of a condition that can arise from contaminated water.—
Madeline Heim,
jsonline.com,
5 Sep. 2025
Verb
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The name comes from how their interior walls were blackened from burning peat.—
Lauren Frayer,
NPR,
14 Sep. 2025
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Currently, according to Applebee's website, menu items include bourbon street chicken and shrimp, hot honey glazed chicken and blackened Cajun salmon.—
Cathy Kozlowicz,
jsonline.com,
3 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Laboratory tests of smuggled samples taken from late Russian opposition leader Alexey Navalny show that he was poisoned when he was imprisoned in a Siberian penal colony, his widow Yulia Navalnaya has said.—
Anna Chernova,
CNN Money,
17 Sep. 2025
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At the end of Season 2, Broadway thespian Ben Glenroy was poisoned by stage producer Donna DiMeo — then revived just long enough for her son, Cliff, to shove him down an elevator shaft in Season 3.—
Ryan Schwartz,
TVLine,
16 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Holmes likewise discredited the MS-13 accusation, for which prosecutors relied on the testimony of coöperating witnesses who either contradicted one another or were otherwise unreliable.—
Cristian Farias,
New Yorker,
15 Sep. 2025
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The Cordell report has since been discredited — missing transcripts, factual errors and even confusion of key witnesses.—
Matthew J. Frauenfeld,
Mercury News,
12 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Fouled.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/fouled. Accessed 19 Sep. 2025.
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