footstep

[ foo t-step ]

/ ˈfʊtˌstɛp /

SEE 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.

Words nearby footstep

footsie, footslog, footsore, footstalk, footstall, footstep, footsteps editor, footstock, footstone, footstool, footwall

Idioms for footstep

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. 2019

Examples from the Web for 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|DAILY BEAST
You can hear every footstep, which detracts from the experience exponentially.
Gal With a Suitcase|Jolie Hunt|February 20, 2011|DAILY BEAST
Then I heard a sound that I knew to be a footstep upon boards.
The Crossing|Winston Churchill
He supposed at first it was a customer, when he heard a footstep at the door, and then caught the tinkle of the watchful bell.
Fighting the Sea|Edward A. Rand

He ceased to listen all the time and to glance furtively out at every footstep.
The Border Legion|Zane Grey
In the Malay Peninsula the magician makes an image like a corpse, a footstep long.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 17, Slice 3|Various
He halted on the first footstep, whistling blithely to a gray-winged yellow-legs that skimmed above his head.
A Scout of To-day|Isabel Hornibrook

British Dictionary definitions for footstep

footstep

/ (ˈfʊtˌstɛp) /

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