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Synonyms

footfall

American  
[foot-fawl] / ˈfʊtˌfɔl /

noun

  1. a footstep.

  2. the sound of footsteps.

    She heard a footfall on the stairs.
footfall British  
/ ˈfʊtˌfɔːl /

noun

  1. the sound of a footstep

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of footfall

First recorded in 1600–10; foot + fall

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.

Some businesses in the city have told the BBC they have seen a decline in footfall as students "hide in their bedrooms".

From BBC • Mar. 22, 2026

Elsewhere, Dubai-focused UAE property developers like Aldar face risks from lower footfall and weaker investor confidence.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 3, 2026

According to the British Retail Consortium, footfall in towns and cities across Yorkshire was down 4.5% in the three months to December compared to the year before.

From BBC • Feb. 1, 2026

Although MRI's footfall data showed retail parks saw 8.2% more people visiting compared with last year, the rise has so far not been big enough to see an overall bump in Boxing Day visitors.

From BBC • Dec. 26, 2025

Then he began to run, too, and I would not be lying to tell you that the ground actually shook with each footfall.

From "The Inquisitor's Tale" by Adam Gidwitz

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.