foot meaning: definition, etymology and quotations

foot

noun

US [fʊt̚] · UK, WA [fʊt̚]

Etymology

From Middle English fot, fote, foot, from Old English fōt, from Proto-West Germanic *fōt, from Proto-Germanic *fōts, from Proto-Indo-European *pṓds. Doublet of pes, pie (“Spanish unit of length”), and pous. Cognates *Scots fit (“foot”) *Yola voote (“foot”) *North Frisian fut, fötj (“foot”) *Saterland Frisian Fout (“foot”) *West Frisian foet (“foot”) *Cimbrian buus, vuaz, vuus (“foot”) *Dutch voet (“foot”) *Dutch Low Saxon voot (“foot”) *German Fuß, Fuss (“foot”) *German Low German Faut, Foot (“foot”) *Gottscheerish vúəs (“foot”) *Luxembourgish Fouss (“foot”) *Mòcheno vuas (“foot”) *Vilamovian füs (“foot”) *Yiddish פֿוס (fus, “foot”) *Danish fod (“foot”) *Faroese and Icelandic fótur (“foot”) *Jamtish fót (“foot”) *Norwegian Bokmål, Norwegian Nynorsk, and Swedish fot (“foot”) *Gothic 𐍆𐍉𐍄𐌿𐍃 (fōtus, “foot”).

26 senses

1A biological structure found in many animals that is…
2Specifically, a human foot, which is found below the…
3Travel by walking.
4The base or bottom of anything.
5The part of a flat surface on which the feet customarily rest.
6The end of a rectangular table opposite the head.
7A short foot-like projection on the bottom of an object…
8A unit of measure equal to twelve inches or one third of…
9Ellipsis of square foot, a unit of area.
10Ellipsis of cubic foot, a unit of volume.
11A unit of measure for organ pipes equal to the…
12Foot soldiers; infantry.
13The end of a cigar which is lit, and usually cut before lighting.
14The part of a sewing machine which presses downward on…
15The bottommost part of a typed or printed page.
16The base of a piece of type, forming the sides of the groove.
17The basic measure of rhythm in a poem.
18The parsing of syllables into prosodic constituents…
19The bottom edge of a sail.
20The end of a billiard or pool table behind the foot…
21In a bryophyte, that portion of a sporophyte which…
22The muscular part of a bivalve mollusc or a gastropod by…
23The globular lower domain of a protein.
24The point of intersection of one line with another that…
25Fundamental principle; basis; plan.
26Recognized condition; rank; footing.

A biological structure found in many animals that is used for locomotion and that is frequently a separate organ at the terminal part of the leg.

A spider has eight feet.

Anatomy, Medicine, Sciences Specifically, a human foot, which is found below the ankle and is used for standing and walking.

Southern Italy is shaped like a foot.
And when I ſawe him, I fell at his feete as dead : and hee laid his right hand vpon me, ſaying vnto mee, Feare not, *I am the firſt,and the laſt.1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Revelation 1:17:

Often Travel by walking.

We went there by foot because we could not afford a taxi.
There is a lot of foot traffic on this street.

The base or bottom of anything.

I'll meet you at the foot of the stairs.

The part of a flat surface on which the feet customarily rest.

We came and stood at the foot of the bed.

The end of a rectangular table opposite the head.

The host should sit at the foot of the table.

A short foot-like projection on the bottom of an object to support it.

The feet of the stove hold it a safe distance above the floor.

A unit of measure equal to twelve inches or one third of a yard, equal to exactly 30.48 centimetres.

The flag pole, which is 20 feet high, was hoisted by a six-foot tall man.
My sis's just over six foot two.

2 more examples

No. I only opened the door a foot and put my head in. The street lamps shine into that room. I could see him. He was all right. Sleeping like a great grampus. Poor, poor chap.1963, Margery Allingham, chapter XX, in The China Governess: A Mystery, London: Chatto & Windus, →OCLC:
No trees have grown on the windswept Falkland Islands in the South Atlantic Ocean for tens of thousands of years — just shrubs and other low-lying vegetation. That’s why a recent arboreal discovery nearly 20 feet (6 meters) beneath the ground caught researchers’ attention.2024 September 27, Katie Hunt, “Scientists discover hidden ancient forest on treeless island”, in CNN:

Abbreviation, Ellipsis, Informal Ellipsis of square foot, a unit of area.

Abbreviation, Ellipsis, Informal Ellipsis of cubic foot, a unit of volume.

Entertainment, Lifestyle, Music A unit of measure for organ pipes equal to the wavelength of two octaves above middle C, approximately 328 mm.

Government, Military, Politics, War Collective Foot soldiers; infantry.

King John went to battle with ten thousand foot and one thousand horse.
His forces, after all the high discourses, amounted really but to eighteen hundred foot.1702–1704, Edward [Hyde, 1st] Earl of Clarendon, (please specify |book=I to XVI), in The History of the Rebellion and Civil Wars in England, Begun in the Year 1641. […], Oxford, Oxfordshire: Printed at the [Sheldonian] Theater:

Cigars, Lifestyle The end of a cigar which is lit, and usually cut before lighting.

He removes a gold lighter from his pocket, flips it open, and waves the flame over the foot, taking short, sucking pulls off the head till it’s lit.2022, Jonathan Escoffery, If I Survive You, 4th Estate (2023), page 128:

Business, Manufacturing, Sewing, Textiles The part of a sewing machine which presses downward on the fabric, and may also serve to move it forward.

Media, Printing, Publishing The bottommost part of a typed or printed page.

Media, Printing, Publishing The base of a piece of type, forming the sides of the groove.

Human sciences, Linguistics, Phonology, Prosody, Sciences The basic measure of rhythm in a poem.

Human sciences, Linguistics, Phonology, Sciences The parsing of syllables into prosodic constituents, which are used to determine the placement of stress in languages along with the notions of constituent heads.

Nautical, Transport The bottom edge of a sail.

To make the mainsail fuller in shape, the outhaul is eased to reduce the tension on the foot of the sail.
Flutter is when the leech or foot of a sail is vibrating from the wind2021, Mike Westin, Olle Landsell, Nina Olofsson, Par Olofsson, Seamanship 2.0, Bloomsbury Publishing:

Ball games, Billiards, Games, Hobbies, Lifestyle, Sports The end of a billiard or pool table behind the foot point where the balls are racked.

Biology, Botany, Natural sciences In a bryophyte, that portion of a sporophyte which remains embedded within and attached to the parent gametophyte plant.

(b) sporophyte with foot reduced, the entire sporophyte enveloped by the calyptra, which is ± stipitate at the base.1992, Rudolf M[athias] Schuster, The Hepaticae and Anthocerotae of North America: East of the Hundredth Meridian, volume V, Chicago, Ill.: Field Museum of Natural History, →ISBN, page 4:

Biology, Malacology, Natural sciences The muscular part of a bivalve mollusc or a gastropod by which it moves or holds its position on a surface.

The globular lower domain of a protein.

Molecular biology

Geometry, Mathematics, Sciences The point of intersection of one line with another that is perpendicular to it.

Fundamental principle; basis; plan.

To conſider the vvhole of the Subject, to read and think on all ſides, to object plainly, and anſvver directly, upon the foot of dry Reaſon and Argument, vvou'd be a very tedious and troubleſome Affair.1732, George Berkeley, “The Sixth Dialogue”, in Alciphron: Or, The Minute Philosopher. […], volume II, London: […] J[acob] Tonson […], →OCLC, section XXXI, page 121:

Recognized condition; rank; footing.

May 20, 1742, Horace Walpole, letter to Horace Mann As to his being on the foot of a servant.

Synonyms: pes, dog, foot, gripper
Derived terms: 486 terms
10-foot user interface, 12-foot, 30, 000-foot view, thirty-thousand-foot view, 4-foot, 6-foot, 8-foot, a closed mouth gathers no feet, acre-foot, acre foot, afoot, Alexander's Foot, ampere-foot, athlete's foot, back foot, backfoot, back foot shot, barefoot, bear's-foot, Beck Foot, best foot, Bigfoot, bind hand and foot, bird's-foot, birdsfoot, bird's-foot trefoil, board-foot, board foot, bumblefoot, by foot, Canal Foot, cat-foot, catsfoot, cat's-foot, Charcot foot, Chinese foot, clawfoot, cloven foot, club-foot, club foot, clubfoot, cock's-foot, cocksfoot, coltsfoot, colt's foot, colt's-foot, cootfoot, cowfoot, Crag Foot, crowfoot, crowsfoot, crow's foot, crow's-foot, cubic foot, dove's-foot, drop foot, dry-foot, duckfoot, duck's-foot, dunefoot, elephant foot yam, elephant's foot, Elephant's Foot, end-foot, fanfoot, fan-foot, featherfoot, fetlock, fin-foot, finfoot, first-foot, five-foot way, flatfoot, flat-foot, fleet of foot, foalfoot, footage, foot and mouth, foot-and-mouth disease, footbag, foot ball, football, foot-ball, footband, footbank, footbar, foot bath, foot-bath, footbath, footbed, footbinder, footbinding, footboard, footbone, footbound, footbow, footbox, footboy, foot brake, footbreadth, footbridge, footcandle, foot candle, foot-candle, footcare, foot chase, footcloth, foot-dragger, footdragger, foot-dragging, foot drop, footer, foot-fall, footfall, foot fault, footfault, foot feed, foot fetish, foot fetishism, footfighting, foot-flagging, footfuck, footfucker, footful, foot-ganger, footganger, footgear, footglove, footgoer, foot-goer, footgolf, foot guard, footguard, footgun, foothalt, foot heater, foothill, foothold, footholder, foothole, foothook, foothot, footing, foot-in-mouth disease, foot-in-the-door technique, foot iron, foot it, foot-jaw, foot job, foot juggling, foot kiss, foot-lambert, foot landraker, footless, footlet, footlicker, foot lifter, footlight, foot-light, footlights, footlike, foot line, footling, foot locker, footlocker, footlog, footlong, footloose, foot louse, footly, footman, footmanship, foot mantle, footmark, footmeal, foot-mouth, footmuff, footnail, footnote, footpace, foot-pace, foot pace, footpad, foot pad, foot-pad, footpage, footpan, footpass, foot passenger, footpath, foot patrol, foot pedal, footpedal, foot peg, footpeg, foot per second, footplate, footpoint, footpole, foot post, footpost, foot-pound, foot-poundal, foot-pound-second, footprint, foot pump, foot pursuit, footquake, foot race, footrace, footracer, footracing, footrail, footrest, foot rest, foot roller, footroom, footrope, foot rot, footrot, footrub, footrule, footrunner, foot-scamp, foot screw, footshake, footshock, footsie, footsie-wootsies, footslave, foot-slog, footslog, footslogger, footslope, footslut, footsock, foot soldier, footsoldiery, footsore, footspeed, footspur, foot-stalk, footstalk, footstall, footstep, footstick, foot stick, footstone, foot-stool, footstool, foot stove, footstrike, foot-strut split, footsure, footsweep, foot sweep, footswitch, foot-tapping, foot-ton, foot traffic, foot trap, foot-travel, foot trip, foot up, foot valve, foot voting, footwalk, footwall, footward, footwarmer, foot-warmer, foot warmer, footway, footwear, footwell, footwheel, foot-wobbler, footwoman, footwork, footworn, foot worship, footwrap, footwriting, forefoot, forty-foot equivalent unit, fotmal, four-foot, four foot, fox's foot, front-foot, front foot, front foot shot, futtock, get cold feet, get off on the right foot, get off on the wrong foot, get one's foot in the door, goatsfoot, goat's foot, goofy-foot, Greek foot, grinch foot, half foot, hand and foot, hand-foot-genital syndrome, hand-foot-mouth disease, hand-foot syndrome, harefoot, hare's-foot fern, hare's-foot, hare's foot, have a foot in both camps, have a foot in the door, have one foot in the grave, have one foot on a banana peel, have one's foot in the door, have the black ox tread on one's foot, headfooter, head to foot, heavy foot, heavy-foot, hen's-foot, hindfoot, Hong Kong foot, hoppus foot, hornfoot, horse and foot, horsefoot, hotfoot, icefoot, ice-foot, ice foot, I'll go to the foot of our stairs, I'll go to the foot of the stairs, I'll go to the foot of my stairs, immersion foot, immersion foot syndrome, international foot, itchy feet, Japanese foot, jawfoot, Kenton Bank Foot, kick with the other foot, kilofoot, lambsfoot, leadfoot, lead foot, leadfooted, Lightfoot, light-footed, light on one's feet, lily foot, linear foot, lion's foot, lobefoot, lotus foot, Luddenden Foot, Luddendenfoot, Madura foot, mast foot, megafoot, metric foot, midfoot, moccasin foot, my foot, neatsfoot, ninja foot, not touch something with a ten-foot pole, not touch with a ten-foot pole, of foot, off the back foot, one foot, one foot in the grave, one foot out the door, on foot, on foot of, on the back foot, on the front foot, on the right foot, on the wrong foot, outfoot, overfoot, paddlefoot, padfoot, pelican's foot, pigeonfoot, pigfoot, plant foot, polt-foot, polt foot, ponyfoot, presser foot, pseudofoot, puppy foot, pussyfoot, put a foot wrong, put foot to ass, put one foot in front of the other, put one's best foot foremost, put one's best foot forward, put one's foot down, put one's foot down on, put one's foot down upon, put one's foot in it, put one's foot in one's mouth, put one's foot in someone's ass, put one's foot up someone's ass, put one's foot in the door, put the same shoe on every foot, put the shoe on the other foot, rabbit-foot, rabbit foot, rabbit's foot, rabbit's-foot fern, rearfoot, refoot, Roman foot, run someone off their feet, saltfoot, scalyfoot, scaly-foot gastropod, set foot on land, set on foot, sheepsfoot, sheep's foot, shoot oneself in the foot, show the cloven foot, side-foot, sidefoot, single-foot, singlefoot, six feet deep, six foot, slew-foot, slue-foot, snowshoe foot, sowfoot, spadefoot, spade foot, spade-foot, spear foot, spinefoot, splayfoot, square foot, stairfoot, start off on the right foot, start off on the wrong foot, step foot, stick one's foot in it, stick one's foot in one's mouth, stocking-foot, superfoot, swiftfoot, switchfoot, tanglefoot, tenderfoot, tenfoot, ten foot, the boot is on the other foot, the shoe is on the other foot, tie hand and foot, tiger-foot, tiger's-foot, trench foot, tube foot, turn of foot, twenty-foot equivalent unit, underfoot, U.S. survey foot, US survey foot, wait on someone hand and foot, wait upon hand and foot, waterfoot, webbed foot, webfoot, what foot the shoe is on, which foot the shoe is on, whorl foot, whose foot the shoe is on, wolf's-foot, wrong foot, wrong-foot, wrongfoot, you cannot put the same shoe on every foot, zone foot therapy
Related terms: pedal, relating to the foot, leg
Coordinate terms: inch, yard, mile, head, side, body, leech, luff, cleft, neck, horse
Holonyms: body
Meronyms: bunion, heel, sole, toe, toenail

foot

verb

Etymology

9 senses

1To use the foot to kick (usually a ball).
2To pay (a bill).
3To tread to measure of music; to dance; to trip; to skip.
4To walk.
5To set foot on; to walk on.
6To set on foot; to establish; to land.
7To renew the foot of (a stocking, etc.).
8To sum up, as the numbers in a column; sometimes with up.
9To spread out and stack up (turf sods) to allow them to dry.

To use the foot to kick (usually a ball).

To pay (a bill).

To tread to measure of music; to dance; to trip; to skip.

There's time enough, I hope, To foot a measure with the bonnie bride,1836, Joanna Baillie, The Phantom, Act 1 (Dramas 2, p.217)
He saw a Quire of Ladies in a round, That featly footing seem'd to skim the Ground1700, [John] Dryden, Fables Ancient and Modern; […], London: […] Jacob Tonson, […], →OCLC, book The Wife of Bath's Tale:

To walk.

thieves do foot by nightc. 1597 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Merry Wiues of Windsor”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act II, scene i]:

Archaic To set foot on; to walk on.

[…] Or shepherd-boy, they featly foot the green1722, Thomas Tickell, Kensington Gardens:
People who would not have dared to foot the place before crept in and did not come to the house.1937, Zora Neale Hurston, Their Eyes Were Watching God, Amistad, published 2013, page 84:

Obsolete To set on foot; to establish; to land.

What confederacy have you with the traitors / Late footed in the kingdom?c. 1603–1606, William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of King Lear”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act III, scene vii]:

To renew the foot of (a stocking, etc.).

I'll sew nether stocks and mend them and foot them too19th century, William Shakespeare, Henry the Fourth Part 1 (modern edited version)

To sum up, as the numbers in a column; sometimes with up.

to foot (or foot up) an account

Ireland To spread out and stack up (turf sods) to allow them to dry.

Derived terms: foot the bill

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