foid

/foyd/

noun

Meaning

Foid is an offensive internet slang term for a woman or women, especially in incel and manosphere communities. It is not a neutral synonym for woman: the word reduces women to an allegedly artificial or subhuman category and is usually used to express contempt, resentment, or misogyny.

1. A derogatory incel label for a woman or women.
2. A quoted or discussed example of misogynist internet jargon, often used by critics, journalists, or researchers rather than as a sincere self-description.

Examples

“Calling women foids is a major red flag.”

“That comment section is full of foid and blackpill slang.”

“She reposted the screenshot to explain why foid is dehumanizing.”

“Don't call someone a foid unless you're deliberately quoting the insult.”

“The streamer used foid as shock bait, not as a neutral word.”

Origin and spread

Foid is a shortened form of femoid, an incel construction based on female and humanoid or android. The longer form was documented in incel-related material by 2017, while the shortened form was circulating by 2018. The word's pseudo-technical ending helps frame women as objects, machines, or a separate nonhuman category; that dehumanizing effect is central to its use. Later appearances in reporting, research, screenshots, and social-media discussions have carried the term beyond its original niche, but its hostile incel association remains strong.[2]

How to use it

Foid is strongly derogatory and misogynistic when used to refer to a woman. It is most often encountered in incel, blackpill, looksmaxxing, and broader manosphere discussions, or in criticism of those communities. People may repeat it ironically or while explaining a screenshot, but without clear context it can easily sound like direct endorsement of the insult. Use woman or women when a neutral reference is intended.