Words / C2

FOYBL/ˈfɔɪbl/

A foible is a minor weakness of character, often slightly comic: a foible, harmless foibles. Fault and weakness are everyday and can be serious; vice is moral. Feeble means weak (strength) — different word. Do not call fraud a foible.

Meaning

A minor weakness of character, often slightly comic.

Examples

• “His only foible was numbering every email.”
• “His foible was colour-coding emails; the work still arrived.”
• “Treat a foible as colour; treat negligence as a fault.”

Good to know

A small, often comic, character weakness. Everyday serious: fault. Mix-up: feeble (weak). Not a crime.

Near in meaning

quirk

New