Speakur

Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

foley

/ˈfoʊli/

Word Rarity Rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.50 in modern English

Syllables
fo-ley
IPA
/ˈfoʊli/
11
Scrabble Score
5
Letters
2
Syllables
5
Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

The creation of sound effects, and their addition to film and TV images.

American usage; Uncountable

noun

A foley artist.

American usage; Countable

noun

A Foley catheter.

Colloquial; Countable; Uncountable

name

A surname from Irish.

Countable; Uncountable

name

A city in Baldwin County, Alabama, United States.

Countable; Uncountable

name

A city, the county seat of Benton County, Minnesota, United States.

Countable; Uncountable

name

A city in Lincoln County, Missouri, United States.

Countable; Uncountable

Example Sentences

Etymology

From the surname Foley, itself from Irish Ó Foghlú and Old Irish Ó Foghladha (“plunderer”). The meanings related to sound effects are named after sound effects pioneer Jack Foley.

Origin

Word Breakdown

  • Root: Ó Foghlú, Ó Foghladha

Regional Pronunciation

  • American English: /ˈfoʊli/

Usage

Inflected Forms

foleys (plural)

Phrases

foley session Foley Island Foley Park

Homonyms

foley

Rhymes With

holy slowly wholly goalie lowly coli unholy kohli rowley guacamole ravioli moly

Questions

How do you pronounce foley?
The recorded pronunciation is /ˈfoʊli/.
What does foley mean?
The creation of sound effects, and their addition to film and TV images.
Where does foley come from?
It is traced to Irish.

How to pronounce foley

  1. Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “foley”.
  2. Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling (/ˈfoʊli/) so you know which sounds to aim for.
  3. Play the audio — Click Play to hear reference audio for “foley”.
  4. Repeat and practice — Say “foley” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.