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forefoot

American  
[fawr-foot, fohr-] / ˈfɔrˌfʊt, ˈfoʊr- /

noun

  • forefeet
    plural
  1. Zoology. one of the front feet of a quadruped, an insect, etc.

  2. Nautical.

    1. the point at which the stem of a hull joins the keel; the forward end of a keel.

    2. a curved member at this point in a wooden hull.


forefoot British  
/ ˈfɔːˌfʊt /

noun

  1. either of the front feet of a quadruped

  2. nautical the forward end of the keel

"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

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

Etymology

Origin of forefoot

First recorded in 1325–75, forefoot is from the Middle English word forfot, forefote. See fore-, foot

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.

See Examples For:

The company claims they deliver an 11% greater forefoot energy return and improve running economy by 1.6% compared to its predecessor.

From BBC Apr. 27, 2026

Unlike the forefoot, which makes contact with the ground only through its hooves, the hind feet also included a fleshy heel pad behind the hooves.

From Science Daily Nov. 30, 2025

Her custom track shoes, meanwhile, feature six spikes instead of the regular five and more cushion under the forefoot.

From The Wall Street Journal Jun. 25, 2025

Johns owns two pairs of electronic socks from Snow Deer, which heat the toes and forefoot zone.

From Seattle Times Feb. 23, 2024

She got a rope and tied one end of it to his right forefoot.

From "Old Yeller" by Fred Gipson

Then the researchers calculated how various limb phases, or measurements of the time lag between forefeet and hindfeet, fit onto the trackways.

From Science Magazine Mar. 2, 2022

"They were all typical forefeet impressions as if the animal had just been barely kicking bottom."

From Fox News Jan. 28, 2020

After all, goes the theory, if we were barefoot, and our feet and bodies were not ravaged by years of misuse and disuse, we would run on our forefeet like the Tarahumara Indians.

From The Guardian Oct. 9, 2014

They wanted to land lightly on their forefeet, or they wouldn’t be in FiveFingers, but there was a disconnect between their intentions and their actual movements.

From New York Times Nov. 4, 2011

He cleaned his antennae with his forefeet, frisking and smoothing them so that he looked like a Victorian villain twirling his moustachios.

From "The Once and Future King" by T. H. White

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