foolishly

From Middle English folysly, folysschly; equivalent to foolish +‎ -ly.

• IPA^(key): /ˈfuːlɪʃli/

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foolishly (comparative more foolishly, superlative most foolishly)

1. In a foolish manner.

   He dressed foolishly to entertain the children.

   • 1811, [Jane Austen], chapter XVII, in Sense and Sensibility […], volume I, London: […] C[harles] Roworth, […], and published by T[homas] Egerton, […], →OCLC, page 220:

     I never wish to offend, but I am so foolishly shy, that I often seem negligent, when I am only kept back by my natural aukwardness.

   • 1820, [Walter Scott], chapter XV, in The Abbot. […], volume I, Edinburgh: […] [James Ballantyne & Co.] for Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme, and Brown, […]; and for Archibald Constable and Company, and John Ballantyne, […], →OCLC, pages 329–330:

     “Nothing to speak of,” said Adam Woodcock, answering for the boy—“a foolish quarrel with me, which was more foolishly told over again to my honoured lady, cost the poor boy his place. […]”

2. Without good judgment.

   Foolishly, he had decided that, because a home was the best investment, two homes were even better.

   • 2007 August 1, “Unwise Arms Deal With Saudi Arabia (2 Letters)”, in The New York Times‎^[1], archived from the original on 26 November 2022:

     Now Mr. Bush plans to pour more arms into this unstable region and add fuel to the volatile powderkeg he has foolishly created.