carbon footprint

American  

noun

carbon footprints plural

1. the amount of carbon dioxide or other carbon compounds emitted into the atmosphere by the activities of an individual, company, country, etc..

   the carbon footprint of an overseas flight;

   how to measure your carbon footprint.

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carbon footprint British  

noun

1. a measure of the amount of carbon dioxide released into the atmosphere by a single endeavour or by a company, household, or individual through day-to-day activities over a given period

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• carbon footprints
  plural

Etymology

Origin of carbon footprint

First recorded in 1995–2000

Example Sentences

Ternus is credited with leading a drive to make Apple products more durable, reliable and resilient, as well as innovative designs that reduced their carbon footprint.

From Barron's • Apr. 21, 2026

The data centers on which AI -- and cloud technology more broadly -- rely consume vast amounts of electricity, which often has a large carbon footprint.

From Barron's • Mar. 27, 2026

A new border tax will penalize imports based on their carbon footprint, but it isn’t clear how exactly that will work in this complicated supply chain, said Matthew Thoelke of Chemical Market Analytics.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 29, 2026

One would hate to see the carbon footprint of these AI trials.

From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 23, 2026

It said on average a real Christmas tree produces about 3.5kg of carbon dioxide emissions, but a 2m tree sent to landfill without its roots can have a carbon footprint of 16kg.

From BBC • Jan. 6, 2026