Are you looking for some useful foot idioms?
You are in the right place.
In this post, we will discuss 55 foot idioms that will make you sound like a native English speaker.
Table of Contents
55 Foot / Feet Idioms And Phrases (Meaning & Examples)
1. To Put One’s Best Foot Forward
- Meaning: to make a good first impression.
- Use In A Sentence: I told Mark he needs to put his best foot forward if he wants to do well on the job interview.
2. To Be Caught On The Wrong Foot
- Meaning: to be caught by surprise or to not be ready for something because it happened so suddenly and unexpectedly.
- Use In A Sentence: It seems I caught Diane on the wrong foot when she answered the door in her pajamas.
3. To Bind/Tie Someone Hand And Foot
- Meaning: to restrict a person’s freedom to do something.
- Use In A Sentence: Mark is bound hand and foot by his new contract. He can’t take a vacation for at least six months.
4. To Have A Foot In Both Camps
- Meaning: to support two opposing groups of people.
- Use In A Sentence: I don’t know if I trust Joe’s judgment, he has a foot in both camps.
5. To Have/Get A Foot In The Door
- Meaning: a chance to do something that oftentimes will lead to more opportunities.
- Use In A Sentence: I think you should work for John. It may not pay the most money, but it is a good way to get your foot in the door and possibly get a better job in the future.
6. To Foot The Bill
- Meaning: to pay for something.
- Use In A Sentence: I went to lunch with Jack this afternoon and he foot the bill.
7. To Get Off / Start Off On The Right Foot
- Meaning: a positive start. To start something or begin something well.
- Use In A Sentence: In order to start off on the right foot, get to know your co-workers as soon as possible.
8. To Get Off / Start Off On The Wrong Foot
- Meaning: an unfavorable start or beginning of something. To have a bad start
- Use In A Sentence: I got off on the wrong foot by telling my mother-in-law that I wanted to live far away from here.
9. To Have A Lead Foot
- Meaning: used to describe a person that tends to drive fast.
- Use In A Sentence: Tommy is known to have a lead foot. I have no doubt we will get to Milwaukee by the 6 o’clock deadline.
10. To Have The Shoe On The Other Foot
- Meaning: a situation where the opposite is true. When someone’s situation has changed into another person’s situation.
- Use In A Sentence: Before Mark always had health problems, but now the shoe is on the other foot and I am the one with all the health problems.
11. My Foot!
- Meaning: an expression used to express disbelief.
- Use In A Sentence: A ninety-nine dollar seafood platter? My foot! I don’t have ninety nine dollars to spend on a meal!
12. To Not Put/Set A Foot Wrong
- Meaning: used to describe someone who seems not to make any mistakes.
- Use In A Sentence: My brother never puts a foot wrong in my mother’s eyes.
13. To Have One Foot In The Grave
- Meaning: Someone who is very sick or very old and is going to die very soon.
- Use In A Sentence: The doctor says he has one foot in the grave and he probably won’t last much longer.
14. On Foot
- Meaning: to travel by walking.
- Use In A Sentence: My truck broke down so I had to go to work on foot.
15. To Put One’s Foot Down
- Meaning: to take a firm stand on something. To be unyielding.
- Use In A Sentence: I put my foot down and told them that I was not going to the party.
16. To Put One’s Foot To The Floor
- Meaning: to drive quickly.
- Use In A Sentence: I had to put my foot to the floor to make it to the movies on time.
17. To Put One Foot In Front Of The Other
- Meaning: to do something carefully and deliberately.
- Use In A Sentence: Don’t worry. There is nothing to be concerned about. Let’s just focus on putting one foot in front of the other and I am sure everything will be okay.
18. To Put One’s Foot In One’s Mouth
- Meaning: to say something you regret. Usually something hurtful or stupid.
- Use In A Sentence: Mario always puts his foot in his mouth. His wife continually reminds him to think before he speaks.
19. Set Foot In/On Something
- Meaning: to visit a place.
- Use In A Sentence: Are you excited about your trip? Yes, I have never set foot in Germany before.
20. To Shoot Oneself In The Foot
- Meaning: to inadvertently ruin your plans/progress/success by something one says or does.
- Use In A Sentence: I shot myself in the foot when I told my boss what I really thought.
21. To Wait On Somebody Hand And Foot
- Meaning: to do everything for someone.
- Use In A Sentence: His mother waits on him hand and foot. He doesn’t have to do anything.
22. To Be On The Back Foot
- Meaning: to be in an unfavorable position. To retreat.
- Use In A Sentence: My plan to buy a new house has been on the back foot ever since I lost my jobs.
23. Blisterfoot
- Meaning: used to describe someone who spends a lot of time walking.
- Use In A Sentence: The blisterfoot soliders were tired after a long day of work.
24. From Head To Foot/Toe
- Meaning: one’s entire body.
- Use In A Sentence: After his morning walk, our dog Sulley was covered from head to toe in mud.
25. To Live Under The Cat’s Foot
- Meaning: to be nagged by another person.
- Use In A Sentence: Tom has been living under the cat’s foot ever since the day he got married.
26. To Hotfoot It
- Meaning: to walk somewhere as quickly as possible.
- Use In A Sentence: We need to hotfoot it out of here before the teacher comes back into the classroom.
27. Fleet Of Foot
- Meaning: to be able to run quickly.
- Use In A Sentence: Cindy who was known to be a fleet of foot outran the other competitors and won the race.
28. Foot In Mouth Disease
- Meaning: used to describe someone who tends to say the wrong thing at the wrong time.
- Use In A Sentence: Jessica suffers from foot in mouth disease.
29. To Have One’s Foot On Someone’s Neck
- Meaning: to be in a position of control over somebody.
- Use In A Sentence: It appears Dave had his foot on Mark’s neck during the negotiations.
30. Flatfoot
- Meaning: used to describe a person who is clumsy and awkward.
- Use In A Sentence: I don’t know if I would want Sally to carry that glass table. She is so flatfooted!
31. To Foot Up
- Meaning: to add something; to total.
- Use In A Sentence: Jerry asked Michelle to foot up the costs of the project.
32. Footloose And Fancy-Free
- Meaning: to do whatever you want without any commitments or obligations. It is usually used to refer to relationship commitments.
- Use In A Sentence: Now that she broke up with Steve she is footloose and fancy-free.
33. To Get A Foothold On Something
- Meaning: to be in a stable position so as to progress.
- Use In A Sentence: Taking this job has really helped him get a foothold in the marketing industry.
34. To Have Both Feet On The Ground
- Meaning: to be grounded. To have a realistic viewpoint about one’s goals or ideas.
- Use In A Sentence: I enjoyed talking with Steve about his plans for the future. He seems to have both feet on the ground.
35. To Be At Someone’s Feet
- Meaning: to be fascinated by someone and thus being influenced by them.
- Use In A Sentence: As a young child, he was always at his father’s feet.
36. To Drag One’s Feet
- Meaning: to move slowly because one does not want to do something.
- Use In A Sentence: Will you quit dragging your feet. Go upstairs and wash your hands for dinner.
37. To Be Light On Your Feet
- Meaning: to be able to move quickly and gracefully.
- Use In A Sentence: I knew he liked to play sports, but I never expected him to be so light on his feet on the dance floor.
38. To Be Run Off One’s Feet
- Meaning: used to describe someone who is very busy.
- Use In A Sentence: Sue was run off her feet with the school girls visiting.
39. To Get Rushed Off One’s Feet
- Meaning: to be worked very hard so that one is especially busy.
- Use In A Sentence: We are going to have 25 people at our house tonight. Everyone is going to get rushed off their feet.
40. To Get Cold Feet
- Meaning: to be anxious or nervous about doing something new, usually at the last minute.
- Use In A Sentence: Billy always told me he wanted to ride the new roller coaster, but after he saw how big it was he got cold feet and decided not to go.
41. To Come To One’s Feet
- Meaning: to stand up usually to applaud or to cheer.
- Use In A Sentence: Suddenly the entire audience came to their feet and they started singing
42. To Be Dead On One’s Feet
- Meaning: to be extremely tired to the point of falling asleep while on your feet.
- Use In A Sentence: After working a double shift he was dead on his feet.
43. To Land On One’s Feet
- Meaning: to successfully deal with a difficult situation.
- Use In A Sentence: I wouldn’t worry about Stephanie. Even in the most difficult situations she always tends to land on her feet.
44. To Get One’s Feet Wet
- Meaning: to try something new for the first time.
- Use In A Sentence: Larry got his feet wet in the cleaning business by working with his older brother.
45. To Get/Have Itchy Feet
- Meaning: to have the urge (itch) to travel, change jobs, move or break away from the same daily routine.
- Use In A Sentence: Fernando has a hard time keeping a job for a long time. After a few years, he gets itchy feet to move somewhere else.
46. To Have Clay Feet
- Meaning: to have a weakness.
- Use In A Sentence: Even though Hollywood stars seem to be perfect they too have clay feet.
47. To Jump In With Both Feet
- Meaning: to start something enthusiastically.
- Use In A Sentence: Corey was hesitant about the new job. However, Ryan jumped in with both feet.
48. To Pull The Carpet / Rug Out From One’s Feet
- Meaning: to suddenly, unexpectedly remove the help or assistance from someone.
- Use In A Sentence: I would love to quit my job and start my own business, but I can’t just pull the carpet out from their feet like that.
49. To Regain One’s Feet
- Meaning: to stand up after falling down. It can also mean to recover from a financial problem.
- Use In A Sentence: I helped Megan regain her feet after she fell on the ground.
50. To Stand On One’s Own Two Feet
- Meaning: to be independent, no longer needing assistance or support from other people.
- Use In A Sentence: After losing his job, Gary’s parents helped him out until he was able to stand on his own two feet.
51. To Shake The Dust Off one’s Feet
- Meaning: to leave a situation indignantly or disdainfully.
- Use In A Sentence: The best thing you can do when someone hurts you is to shake the dust off your feet and move on.
52. To Sweep One Off One’s Feet
- Meaning: to quickly and oftentimes unexpectedly charm someone.
- Use In A Sentence: All women want a man who can sweep them off their feet.
53. To Think On Your Feet
- Meaning: to think quickly. To think clearly in a difficult situation.
- Use In A Sentence: I was glad Dan was able to think on his feet and come up with a solution so quickly. Without him, we wouldn’t have finished on time.
54. To Take A Load Off One’s Feet
- Meaning: to sit down and rest; to lie down.
- Use In A Sentence: I think you just need to go home and take a load off your feet.
55. To Vote With One’s Feet
- Meaning: To show your disapproval by walking away.
- Use In A Sentence: If they don’t like the coffee shop they will vote with their feet and go somewhere else.
There you have it! 55 Foot idioms. Which one is your favorite?
