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April Fools’ Day is celebrated on the 1st April in many countries, including in the UK.

It is traditionally a day to trick the gullible into believing stories that aren’t true, and for playing jokes on people in order to make them laugh, or appear foolish.

What are the origins of April Fool’s Day?

As with most traditions, there are various explanations for the origin of April Fools’ Day.

One of the most popular is that the modern tradition of April Fools’ Day may have originated in France when the Gregorian calendar, which moved New Year’s Day from March 25 to January 1, was adopted in 1582.

People who continued to celebrate the end of New Year Week on April 1 were were therefore called ‘April fools’ or, as the French say, poissons d’avril (‘April fish’).

Here are some famous April Fools’ Day hoaxes.

Do you have a favourite April Fools’ Day hoax? Here’s one of my favourites, from the BBC:

Idioms with the word ‘fool’:

an April Fool – if somebody is an April Fool they are the victim of a trick played on April Fools’ Day.

play the fool - to play the fool is to deliberately behave in a playful and funny way to amuse oneself and others.

Example of use:
John is always playing the fool. I wish he would be a bit more sensible sometimes.

a fool’s errand – if you are sent on a fool’s errand you are sent on an errand that has no purpose, or that cannot be accomplished because it is a joke.

Example of use:
He sent them on a fool’s errand to buy some blue and yellow striped paint.

a fool’s paradise – happiness that is based on false hope and illusion.

Example of use:
He’s living in a fool’s paradise if he thinks she will forgive him.

fool’s gold – something worthless which foolish people mistakenly believe to be valuable. The brass-yellow mineral iron pyrites is often called fool’s gold.

nobody’s fool – to be nobody’s fool is to be very wise.

Example of use:
She is old and frail but she’s nobody’s fool.

a fool for one’s pains – to be a fool for one’s pains is to work hard without proper payment, or to help someone without your help being noticed or appreciated.

Example of use:
Mr Evans’ daughter looked after him day and night for ten years, without a word of thanks. She was a fool for her pains.

Phrasal verb: fool around

Here’s an online April Fools’ Day wordsearch. How many words can you find?

And, for more advanced learners, here’s an online quiz from the Guardian: Can you spot the April Fools’ Day gags?. See if you can guess which ones are true stories, and which ones are April Fools’ Day tricks.

Are you going to play any April Fools’ Day tricks? I’d love to hear how April Fools’ Day is celebrated in your country

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If somebody is an April Fool they are the victim of a practical joke played on April Fools’ Day (1st April).

Example of use:
1. Her children made an April Fool of her by putting salt in her cup of tea.

When someone successfully plays an April Fool trick on somebody they often shout out ‘April Fool!‘.

An April Fool also refers to the trick itself.

Example of use:
1. The school children played an April Fool on their teachers and locked them in the staffroom.

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If something burns down, or someone burns it down, it is completely destroyed by fire.

Examples of use:
1. There was a huge fire at the factory, and it burned down.

2. He was sent to prison for deliberately burning down the hotel.

infinitive – burn down

present simple – burn down and burns down

-ing form – burning down

past simple – burned down

past participle – burned down

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If people or things are spread out, they are not close together.

Examples of use:
1. The tourists were spread out over the whole beach.

2. Her study books were spread out over her desk and all over the office floor.

If a group of people spread out they move away from each other so that there is a bigger space between them and they cover a wider area.

Example of use:
1. The police officers spread out so that they could search the field for clues.

To spread out something (or spread something out) is to open out something that was folded and lay it flat on a surface such as a table, or the ground.

Examples of use:
1. They spread the map out on the bonnet of their car, and looked for the correct route.

2. This looks like a nice place for a picnic. You spread out the blanket and I’ll get the food from the car.

3. When we go on holiday we like to get up early and spread our towels out by the swimming pool.

infinitive – spread out

present simple – spread out and spreads out

-ing form – spreading out

past simple – spread out

past participle – spread out

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To spell out something (or spell something out) is to explain it in a very clear and detailed way.

Examples of use:
1. I don’t understand what you are talking about. Can you spell it out for me?

2. I’m sure I don’t have to spell out how important it is to practise your English as often as possible.

infinitive – spell out

present simple – spell out and spells out

-ing form – spelling out

past simple – spelt out

past participle – spelt out

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To sleep through something is to stay asleep through a noise or activity.

Examples of use:
1. The baby slept through the car journey.

2. My father is lucky. He can sleep through any noise.

3. We slept through last night’s storm and woke up this morning to find part of our roof had blown off.

infinitive – sleep through

present simple – sleep through and sleeps through

-ing form – sleeping through

past simple – slept through

past participle – slept through

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To speak up for someone or something is to show your support by publicly expressing your opinions.

Examples of use:
1. Elise spoke up to defend Alice when she was accused of theft.

2. Minority ethinic groups should be empowered to speak up for themselves.

To speak up is also to speak more loudly so that you can be heard.

Examples of use:
1. Speak up. I can’t hear you.

2. You’ll have to speak up. He’s a bit deaf.

3. Can you speak up, please? We can’t hear you at the back of the room.

infinitive – speak up

present simple – speak up and speaks up

-ing form – speaking up

past simple – spoke up

past participle – spoken up

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To launch into something (such as a speech, a song, a presentation) is to start doing or saying something in a very energetic or enthusiastic way.

Examples of use:
1. She walked into the office and suddenly launched into stories about her adventures on holiday.

2. He was just launching into his presentation when someone’s mobile phone rang.

If you launch yourself into something you become involved in it an enthusiastic way.

Examples of use:
1. She launched herself into the project for the new office development.

2. He launched himself enthusiastically into the housework.

infinitive – launch into

present simple – launch into and launches into

-ing form – launching into

past simple – launched into

past participle – launched into

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To laugh off something (or laugh something off) is to laugh about something that has upset you, or made you angry, in order to make it seem less important or serious.

Examples of use:

1. He laughed off his bad exam marks.

2. She laughed off her mother's criticism of her hair and clothes, and went to the party.

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To move up is to move your body a little to make space for someone else to sit down or stand. (British and Australian English)

Examples of use:
1. Move up so this elderly lady can sit down as well.

2. Can you move up so that I can sit down, please?

3. The train was so crowded this morning. Even when we all moved up as much as we could, there was only room for one more passenger.

infinitive – move up

present simple – move up and moves up

-ing form – moving up

past simple – moved up

past participle – moved up

Image by Dale Ellerm