underfoot

[uhn-der-foot]

adverb

1. under the foot or feet; on the ground; underneath or below.

   The climb was difficult because there were so many rocks underfoot.

2. so as to form an obstruction, as in walking; in the way.

   the ends of her sash falling constantly underfoot.

adjective

1. lying under the foot or feet; in a position to be trodden upon.

underfoot

/ ˌʌndəˈfʊt /

adverb

1. underneath the feet; on the ground

2. in a position of subjugation or subservience

3. in the way

Word History and Origins

Origin of underfoot¹

1150–1200; Middle English underfot (adv.). See under-, foot

Example Sentences

Like walking through a sparse forest in early autumn, the air sharp with smoke from a campfire, leaves underfoot brittle enough to crack.

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Meanwhile, the sniffer dogs at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia were wearing Crocs due to the temperature of the concrete underfoot.

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"The hills look burnt," he said, adding that peatland, usually wet and boggy, "is now crunchy" underfoot.

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They took a toll, onerously so, like an undertow at the ocean shoreline that yanks you down into the muddy sand underfoot, and my debt more than quadrupled.

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In no time at all, Amy is wandering the halls, peeking in on patients, getting underfoot.

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