English Reference
noun

feet

n.
US /ˈfit/ UK /fˈiːt/ feet

  1. 01 A1 Beginner

    the parts of your body at the end of your legs that you use for standing and walking.

    the terminal part of the vertebrate leg upon which an individual stands.

    Simple

    Take your shoes off and give your feet a rest.

    In context

    After a full day of hiking through the rugged terrain, his feet were blistered and sore despite the high-quality boots.

    Pitfall
    My foots are tired after the long walk. My feet are tired after the long walk.

    The word 'foot' has an irregular plural; use 'feet' instead of adding '-s'.

  2. 02 A2 Elementary

    a unit for measuring length, equal to 12 inches or about 30 centimetres.

    a unit of length in the imperial system equal to 12 inches; the plural form is used for measurements greater than one.

    Simple

    The ceiling in this old house is ten feet high.

    In context

    The pilot was instructed to maintain an altitude of thirty thousand feet until the aircraft had cleared the mountain range.

  3. 03 B1 Intermediate

    the bottom or lowest part of something, like a mountain or a bed.

    the lowest part or base of an object or geographical feature.

    Simple

    We set up our camp at the feet of the great mountains.

    In context

    The servants gathered at the feet of the grand staircase, waiting for the duchess to make her appearance.

Usage feet long


From Middle English feet, fet, from Old English fēt, from Proto-Germanic fōtiz, from Proto-Indo-European pódes, nominative plural of *pṓds (“foot”). Cognate with Saterland Frisian Fäite (“feet”), West Frisian fiet (“feet”), German Füße (“feet”), Danish fødder (“feet”), Swedish fötter (“feet”), Faroese føtur (“feet”), Icelandic fætur (“feet”).

Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

This entry
Origin ine-pro *pódes
Level A1 · Beginner
Frequency Very common
Updated