Foolish vs Wise - What's the difference?
foolish | wise | Antonyms |
Lacking good sense or judgement; unwise.
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*:As a political system democracy seems to me extraordinarily foolish , but I would not go out of my way to protest against it. My servant is, so far as I am concerned, welcome to as many votes as he can get. I would very gladly make mine over to him if I could.
Resembling or characteristic of a fool.
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*(Aeschylus)
*:It is a profitable thing, if one is wise, to seem foolish .
Showing good judgement or the benefit of experience.
(colloquial) Disrespectful.
To become wise.
(ergative, slang) Usually with "up", to inform or learn.
(archaic) Way, manner, method.
* 1850 , The Burden of Nineveh , lines 2-5
* 1866 , , A Ballad of Life , lines 28-30
* 1926 , J. S. Fletcher, Sea Fog , page 308
(dialectal) to instruct
(dialectal) to advise; induce
(dialectal) to show the way, guide
(dialectal) to direct the course of, pilot
(dialectal) to cause to turn
Wise is a antonym of foolish.
As adjectives the difference between foolish and wise
is that foolish is lacking good sense or judgement; unwise while wise is showing good judgement or the benefit of experience.As a verb wise is
to become wise.As a noun wise is
way, manner, method.As an acronym WISE is
acronym of wing-in-surface effect|lang=en.foolish
English
Adjective
(en-adj)Synonyms
* absurd * idiotic * ridiculous * silly * unwiseAntonyms
* wiseDerived terms
* foolishnesswise
English
Etymology 1
From (etyl) wis, wys, from (etyl) . Cognate with Dutch wijs, German weise, Swedish vis. Compare wit.Adjective
(er)- Storing extra food for the winter was a wise decision.
- They were considered the wise old men of the administration.
- "It is a profitable thing, if one is wise , to seem foolish" - Aeschylus
- Don't get wise with me!
Usage notes
* Objects: person, decision, advice, counsel, saying, etc.Antonyms
* unwise * foolishDerived terms
* crack wise * wisdom * wiseacre * wise apple * wiseass * wisecrack * wise guy * wise-hearted * wiseling * wiselike * wiseness * wizen * wizard * word to the wiseVerb
(wis)- Mo wised him up about his situation.
- ''After Mo had a word with him, he wised up.
Etymology 2
From (etyl) .Noun
(en noun)- ... the prize
- Dead Greece vouchsafes to living eyes, —
- Her Art for ever in fresh wise
- From hour to hour rejoicing me.
- A riven hood was pulled across his eyes;
- The token of him being upon this wise
- Made for a sign of Lust.
- And within a few minutes the rest of us were on our way too, judiciously instructed by Parkapple and the Brighton official, and disposed of in two taxi-cabs, the drivers of which were ordered to convey us to Rottingdean in such wise that each set his load of humanity at different parts of the village and at the same time that the bus was due to arrive at the hotel.