Fall Foul
. To fall foul of one is to make an assault on someone. A sea term. A rope is said to be foul when it is entangled; and one ship falls foul of another when it runs against her and prevents her free progress. Hence to run up against, to assault.
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Entry taken from
Dictionary of Phrase and Fable,
edited by the Rev. E. Cobham Brewer, LL.D. and revised in 1895.