Word.ws English Dictionary

Synonyms of foil

86 similar words

Another word for foil is spoor. Other synonyms of foil are aluminium foil, silver foil, silver paper, tin foil and put the kibosh on.

Synonyms and similar words for foil

nounThin aluminium/aluminum (or, formerly, tin) used for wrapping food.

  • aluminium foilA very thin, pliable, easily torn sheet of aluminium used for cooking, packaging, cosmetics, and insulation.
  • silver foilUsed other than figuratively or idiomatically: see silver, foil.
  • silver paperAluminium foil, often used in wrapping food products such as chocolate.
  • tin foil

verbTo prevent (something) from being accomplished.

  • put the kibosh onTo halt, stop, or squelch.
  • scupperTo thwart or destroy, especially something belonging or pertaining to another.
  • thwartTo cause to fail; to frustrate, to prevent.

verbTo blunt; to dull; to spoil.

  • marTo spoil; to ruin; to scathe; to damage.
  • mess up
  • vitiateTo spoil, make faulty; to reduce the value, quality, or effectiveness of something.
  • blightTo impede the development or growth of (an aspect of life); to damage, to ruin, to spoil.
  • bumble
  • botchTo perform (a task) in an incompetent or unacceptable manner; to make a mess of something.
  • bugger up vulgar
  • bungleTo incompetently perform (a task); to ruin (something) through incompetent action; to botch up, to bumble.
  • contaminateTo soil, stain, corrupt, or infect by contact or association.
  • corruptTo waste, spoil, or consume; to make worthless.
  • crab slang
  • depraveTo make bad or worse; to vitiate; to corrupt.
  • disrupt
  • disturb
  • fuck up vulgar
  • jack up vulgar
  • mishandle
  • mommick US, dialectalTo mess up; to bungle or ruin by bungling.
  • polluteTo make something or somewhere less suitable for some activity, especially by the introduction of some unnatural factor.
  • put a crimp in
  • ruinTo upset or overturn the plans or progress of, or to have a disastrous effect on something.
  • screw up vulgar
  • soilTo make dirty.
  • sour
  • spoil
  • stainTo discolor, as by spilling or other contact with a fluid or substance.
  • undo literary
  • upset
  • turn upside down
  • upset the applecartTo disorganize or spoil something, especially an established arrangement or plan.
  • ball up dated, slangTo ruin or botch.
  • queer dated, slang

nounThe track of an animal.

  • spoorThe track, trail, droppings, or scent of an animal.

verbTo defile; to soil.

  • befileTo make filthy; befoul; soil.
  • sullyTo soil or stain; to dirty.
  • beclart UK, dialectalTo besmear; bedaub; bemire; smear all over with dirt.
  • bedirtyTo dirty, soil; make dirty.
  • bedizen UK, dialectalTo make (someone or something) dirty; to bedaub, to besmear, to dirty.
  • befoulTo make foul; to soil; to contaminate, pollute.
  • begrimeTo ingrain grime or dirt which is difficult to remove into (something); also (more generally), to make (something)...
  • beshit figuratively, vulgarTo soil; to spoil; to defile; to befoul.
  • besmearTo smear over, to smear all over, to daub.
  • besmirchTo make dirty.
  • besullyTo make sullied or soiled; defile.
  • blackenTo make dirty.
  • blotTo impair; to damage; to mar; to soil.
  • clatTo dirty.
  • darkenTo make foul; to sully; to tarnish.
  • defileTo make (someone or something) physically dirty or unclean; to befoul, to soil.
  • dirtenTo make or become dirty or soiled.
  • dirty
  • elt ScotlandTo begrime; soil with mud; daub; smear.
  • foulTo make dirty.
  • gunkTo soil or make dirty.
  • gunk upTo soil or dirty; to mess up; to clog.
  • inquinateTo pollute or make dirty.
  • scungeTo mark with scunge; to begrime or besmirch.
  • sling mud
  • slotterTo make filthy; to foul.
  • slurTo soil; to sully; to contaminate; to disgrace.
  • smearTo make something dirty.
  • smirchTo dirty; to make dirty.
  • smudgeTo soil or smear with dirt.
  • smutTo stain (or be stained) with soot or other dirt.
  • smutchTo soil, stain or smudge.
  • soss UK, dialectalTo soil; to make dirty.
  • spotTo stain; to leave a spot (on).
  • sullowTo sully.
  • tarnishTo compromise, damage, soil, or sully.
  • assoil obsoleteTo make (something) dirty or soiled; to soil; to stain; to sully.
  • bedaub obsoleteTo smear upon; to soil.
  • imbrue (especially with blood) archaic, literary
  • befilth rareTo cover with filth; make filthy; begrime.
  • beray archaic, obsoleteTo make foul; befoul; soil.
  • bewray archaic, obsoleteTo soil or befoul; to beray.
  • blur obsoleteTo smear, stain or smudge.
  • file archaicTo defile.
  • sowl obsoleteTo soil or stain; to dirty.
  • uggle UK, dialectalTo make dirty.

Meaning of foil

  1. noun A very thin sheet of metal.
  2. noun A very thin sheet of plastic.
  3. noun Thin aluminium/aluminum (or, formerly, tin) used for wrapping food.

Full definition of foil

foil in other languages

Questions about synonyms of foil

What is another word for foil?
Foil has 86 synonyms on Word.ws, such as spoor, aluminium foil, silver foil, silver paper, tin foil, put the kibosh on, scupper and thwart.
What does foil mean?
Foil means a very thin sheet of metal.

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: foil (page history and authors) and the entries of the words listed. Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws grouped the synonyms and antonyms by meaning and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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Cite this page: “Synonyms of foil.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/synonyms/foil. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.