footstep

[foo t-step]

See more synonyms for footstep on Thesaurus.com

noun

the setting down of a foot, or the sound so produced; footfall; tread.
the distance covered by a step in walking; pace.
a footprint.

a step by which to ascend or descend.

Idioms

follow in someone's footsteps, to succeed or imitate another person.

Origin of footstep

First recorded in 1175–1225, footstep is from the Middle English word foote steppe. See foot, step

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for footstep

footprint, track, pace, step, tread, gait

Examples from the Web for footstep

Contemporary Examples of footstep

For three years I had been listening to the voice of Hope, and for three years I had waited for a footstep on my threshold.
Read ‘The King in Yellow,’ the ‘True Detective’ Reference That’s the Key to the Show
Robert W. Chambers
February 20, 2014
You can hear every footstep, which detracts from the experience exponentially.
Gal With a Suitcase
Jolie Hunt
February 20, 2011

Historical Examples of footstep

Here is something like the footstep of one who has worn a shoe; can it be that of our friend?
The Last of the Mohicans
James Fenimore Cooper
"I heard a footstep in the hall, and it was my duty to see who was passing," he said.
The Rock of Chickamauga
Joseph A. Altsheler
He had recognised the footstep while it was yet seventy mtres away.
The Slave Of The Lamp
Henry Seton Merriman
But no footstep ever passed the floor immediately below: except his own.
Life And Adventures Of Martin Chuzzlewit
Charles Dickens
No sound of footstep was stirring; no sign of human figure in sight.
The Room in the Dragon Volant
J. Sheridan LeFanu

British Dictionary definitions for footstep

footstep

noun

the action of taking a step in walking
the sound made by stepping or walking
the distance covered with a step; pace
a footmark
a single stair; step
to continue the tradition or example of another

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

Word Origin and History for footstep

early 13c., "footprint," from foot (n.) + step (n.). Meaning "a tread or fall of the foot" is first attested 1530s. Figurative expression to follow in (someone's) footsteps is from 1540s.

Idioms and Phrases with footstep

footstep

see follow in someone's footsteps.