to run a foil
Preserved but no longer current.
To puzzle; to lead astray. The track of game is called its foil; and an animal hunted will sometimes run back over the same foil in order to mislead its pursuers. In another sense the word means "to baffle, frustrate, parry.** It comes from the O.Fr. fouler, to trample upon ( we have the same word in the phrase "to full cloth")- His schemes were foiled, he was prevented in what he had in mind.
Era: ca. 1898 (Victorian)
Sources & notes
Reproduced from Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898 edition, public domain; archive.org, retrieved 2026-07-31; OCR text, minor errors possible). Reflects the scholarship and attitudes of its era.
Common questions
What does “to run a foil” mean?
To puzzle; to lead astray. The track of game is called its foil; and an animal hunted will sometimes run back over the same foil in order to mislead its pursuers. In another sense the word means "to baffle, frustrate, parry.** It comes from the O.Fr. fouler, to trample upon ( we have the same word in the phrase "to full cloth")- His schemes were foiled, he was prevented in what he had in mind.
Is “to run a foil” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.