foil: significato e definizioni

To prevent from being successful; thwart.

To obscure or confuse (a trail or scent) so as to evade pursuers.

Archaic A repulse; a setback.

Archaic The trail or scent of an animal.

A thin, flexible leaf or sheet of metal: aluminum foil.

A thin layer of polished metal placed under a displayed gem to lend it brilliance.

One that by contrast underscores or enhances the distinctive characteristics of another: "I am resolved my husband shall not be a rival, but a foil to me” ( Charlotte Brontë).

The reflective metal coating on the back of a glass mirror.

Architecture A curvilinear, often lobelike figure or space formed between the cusps of intersecting arcs, found especially in Gothic tracery and Moorish ornament.

An airfoil.

Nautical A hydrofoil.

To cover or back with foil.

To set off by contrast.

A fencing sword having a usually circular guard and a thin, flexible four-sided blade with a button on the tip to prevent injury.

The art or sport of fencing with such a sword. Often used in the plural: a contest at foils.