flat-footed
Britishadjective
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having flatfoot
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informal
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clumsy or awkward
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downright and uncompromising
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informal off guard or unawares (often in the phrase catch flat-footed )
Other Word Forms
- flat-footedly adverb
- flat-footedness noun
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Unable to trap West Ham with a high press, United were caught flat-footed by an incisive break.
From Barron's • Feb. 10, 2026
“And the city got caught flat-footed trying to keep up.”
From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 18, 2026
They were flat and flat-footed from the beginning, surrendering a 75-yard touchdown pass on Houston’s first possession and a 43-yard touchdown pass on the second.
From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 27, 2025
Caught flat-footed, Google declared its own “code red” that year as it raced to catch up.
From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 9, 2025
Seabiscuit ate up the length of rein, bounding past Special Agent and leaving Woolf and Indian Broom flat-footed.
From "Seabiscuit: An American Legend" by Laura Hillenbrand
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
