foul
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foul
A rule violation in sports in which a player unfairly obstructs, attacks, or injures an opponent.
Der Schiedsrichter pfiff das Foul und gab dem Spieler eine gelbe Karte.
The referee blew the whistle for the foul and gave the player a yellow card.
foul
In a figurative sense, an unfair, underhanded, or indecent action toward another person.
Ihm allein die Schuld zu geben, war ein übles Foul von seinem Kollegen.
Blaming him alone was a nasty foul by his colleague.
The word 'Foul' comes directly from English and is used mainly in sports contexts. The pronunciation in German is [faʊ̯l], similar to the English word 'fowl' (poultry).
Der Kommentator schrie: „Das war ein klares Foul!“
The commentator shouted, 'That was a clear foul!'
In a sports context, a foul is 'begangen' (committed) by a player and 'gepfiffen' (whistled) or 'gegeben' (given/called) by the referee. These verbs are fixed collocations.
Der Verteidiger beging im Strafraum ein dummes Foul.
The defender committed a stupid foul in the penalty area.
To describe the severity of a rule violation, 'Foul' (foul) is often combined with adjectives such as 'grob' (serious), 'brutal' (brutal), 'absichtlich' (intentional), or 'taktisch' (tactical).
Für dieses grobe Foul hätte er die Rote Karte sehen müssen.
He should have been shown the red card for this serious foul.
You can recognize the figurative meaning by the fact that the context has nothing to do with sports. It is often intensified by adjectives such as 'übel' (nasty), 'mies' (mean), or 'politisch' (political).
Ihn nicht zu dem Treffen einzuladen, war ein mieses Foul von ihr.
Not inviting him to the meeting was a mean foul on her part.
