footnote

[foot-noht]

noun

1. an explanatory or documenting note or comment at the bottom of a page, referring to a specific part of the text on the page.

2. a minor or tangential comment or event added or subordinated to a main statement or more important event.

verb (used with object)

footnoted, footnoting 

1. to add a footnote or footnotes to (a text, statement, etc.); annotate.

   to footnote a dissertation.

footnote

/ ˈfʊtˌnəʊt /

noun

1. a note printed at the bottom of a page, to which attention is drawn by means of a reference mark in the body of the text

2. an additional comment, as to a main statement

verb

1. (tr) to supply (a page, book, etc) with footnotes

Word History and Origins

Origin of footnote¹

First recorded in 1835–45; foot + note

Example Sentences

In a bland footnote, Waller cited the ADP data to buttress his concern that the labor market was slowing.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

The morning after this article was published, HPE said it had made a typo in a footnote in its press release.

Read more on Barron's

The KnuckleHeadz add a footnote: Salvation requires reps, rules and someone mean enough to care.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

If not for the resulting suspension, it would have been a mere footnote in an otherwise excellent performance.

Read more on BBC

Bernstein and Graham knew and admired each other, but she was a footnote in his career.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• explanation 
• reference 

When To Use

What’s the difference between a footnote and an endnote?

A footnote is a note at the bottom (the “foot”) of a page. An endnote is a note at the end of a text (such as an article, a chapter, or an entire book).The difference between footnotes and endnotes is their location, not their function. Both consist of information added to a text in another spot, such as an explanation or a citation of a source. They are both usually indicated with some kind of mark, often an asterisk* or a number¹. The same mark appears in another part of the text along with the corresponding note, either at the bottom of the page (making it a footnote) or at the end of the text (making it an endnote).Of course, if an article is only a single page, the note at the end could be called a footnote or an endnote.Here’s an example of footnote and endnote used correctly in the same sentence.Example: I use footnotes for tangential information so that readers can access it without turning the page, but I use endnotes for citations so they don’t clutter up the page.Want to learn more? Read the full breakdown of the difference between footnote and endnote.