8 VERB If a letter or message is forwarded to someone, it is sent to the place where they are, after having been sent to a different place earlier. □ [be V -ed + from/to ] When he's out on the road, office calls are forwarded to the cellular phone in his truck. □ [V n + from/to ] We will forward your letters to him. [Also V n]
9 N‑COUNT In football, basketball, or hockey, a forward is a player whose usual position is in the opponents' half of the field, and whose usual job is to attack or score goals.
10 → see also centre-forward
11 backwards and forwards → see backwards
fo r|ward|ing ad|dre ss (forwarding addresses ) N‑COUNT A forwarding address is an address that you give to someone when you go and live somewhere else so that they can send your mail on to you. □ The former owner had not left any forwarding address.
fo rward-loo king ADJ If you describe a person or organization as forward-looking , you approve of the fact that they think about the future or have modern ideas. [APPROVAL ]
for|wards /fɔː r wə r dz/ → see forward
fo r|ward slash (forward slashes ) N‑COUNT A forward slash is the sloping line '/' that separates letters, words, or numbers.
for|went /fɔː r we nt/ Forwent is the past tense of forgo .
fos|sil /fɒ s ə l/ (fossils ) N‑COUNT A fossil is the hard remains of a prehistoric animal or plant that are found inside a rock.
fo s|sil fu el (fossil fuels ) also fossil-fuel N‑VAR Fossil fuel is fuel such as coal or oil that is formed from the decayed remains of plants or animals.
fos|sil|ize /fɒ s I la I z/ (fossilizes , fossilizing , fossilized ) in BRIT, also use fossilise 1 VERB If the remains of an animal or plant fossilize or are fossilized , they become hard and form fossils, instead of decaying completely. □ [V ] The most important parts, the flowers, rarely fossilise. □ [be V -ed] The survival of the proteins depends on the way in which bones are fossilised. □ [V -ed] …fossilized dinosaur bones.
2 VERB If you say that ideas, attitudes, or ways of behaving have fossilized or have been fossilized , you are criticizing the fact that they are fixed and unlikely to change, in spite of changing situations or circumstances. [DISAPPROVAL ] □ [V n] They seem to want to fossilize the environment in which people live and work. □ [V ] Needs change while policies fossilize. ● fos|sil|ized ADJ □ …these fossilized organisations.
fos|ter /fɒ stə r , [AM ] fɔː st-/ (fosters , fostering , fostered )
1 ADJ [ADJ n] Foster parents are people who officially take a child into their family for a period of time, without becoming the child's legal parents. The child is referred to as their foster child. □ Little Jack was placed with foster parents.
2 VERB If you foster a child, you take it into your family for a period of time, without becoming its legal parent. □ [V n] She has since gone on to find happiness by fostering more than 100 children.
3 VERB To foster something such as an activity or idea means to help it to develop. □ [V n] Developed countries should foster global economic growth to help new democracies.
fought /fɔː t/ Fought is the past tense and past participle of fight .
foul /faʊ l/ (fouler , foulest , fouls , fouling , fouled )
1 ADJ If you describe something as foul , you mean it is dirty and smells or tastes unpleasant. □ …foul polluted water. □ The smell was quite foul.
2 ADJ [usu ADJ n] Foul language is offensive and contains swear words or rude words. □ He was sent off for using foul language in a match last Sunday. □ He had a foul mouth.
3 ADJ [usu ADJ n] If someone has a foul temper or is in a foul mood, they become angry or violent very suddenly and easily. □ Collins was in a foul mood even before the interviews began.
4 ADJ Foul weather is unpleasant, windy, and stormy.
5 VERB If an animal fouls a place, it drops faeces onto the ground. □ [V n] It is an offence to let your dog foul a footpath.
6 VERB In a game or sport, if a player fouls another player, they touch them or block them in a way which is not allowed according to the rules. □ [V n] He was sent off for fouling the striker.
7 N‑COUNT A foul is an act in a game or sport that is not allowed according to the rules. □ [+ on ] He has committed more fouls than any other player this season. ● ADJ [ADJ n] Foul is also an adjective. □ …a foul tackle.
8 PHRASE If you fall foul of someone or run foul of them, you do something which gets you into trouble with them. [mainly BRIT ] □ He had fallen foul of the FBI.
fou l-mou thed ADJ If you describe someone as foul-mouthed , you disapprove of them because they use offensive words or say very rude things. [DISAPPROVAL ]
fou l pla y
1 N‑UNCOUNT Foul play is criminal violence or activity that results in a person's death. □ The report says it suspects foul play was involved in the deaths of two journalists.
2 N‑UNCOUNT Foul play is unfair or dishonest behaviour, especially during a sports game. □ Players were warned twice for foul play.
fou l-up (foul-ups ) N‑COUNT A foul-up is something that has gone badly wrong as a result of someone's mistakes or carelessness. [INFORMAL ] □ A series of technical foul-ups delayed the launch of the new product.