Foolish Games

I am two fools, I know,/For loving, and for saying so/

- The Tripple Fool

by John Donne

I have expressed this sentiment many times in the last 24 hours: I feel like a fool.

I feel foolish for misreading the signs and mistaking lust for love. I feel foolish that I did not immediately recognise that I was hanging my hopes on a pipe dream. I feel foolish for putting myself in this position. I feel that I should be put in the corner and made to wear the dunce cap - I have obviously not learned anything about relationships, romantic or otherwise, in the last couple of years.

Enough with the self-loathing. Today's question is: what is the origin of the word fool?



A: The word is Old French, originating in the 13th century meaning "madman" or "insane person" or in Vulgar Latin used with a sense of "windbag, empty-headed person". In the 14th century it was used to descibe a court jester, whether that be a professional entertainer or an amusing lunatic that was put on the payroll.

Ah, these foolish games...

Sources:
Dictionary.com - Fool
Online Etymology Dictionary