A hydrofoil is like a special boat that has wings underneath it. These wings use the water to lift up the boat and make it go really fast on top of the water.
It's kind of like when you stick your hand out the window of a moving car and feel the wind pushing up on your hand. The wings on a hydrofoil use the water underneath to push the boat up and keep it gliding on top of the water instead of plowing through it.
This makes the boat go much faster and smoother, like when you're riding a bike and lift the front wheel off the ground. The boat can also turn more easily because it's not pushing through the water like other boats.
Overall, a hydrofoil is a really cool boat that uses special wings to fly above the water and go really fast!