noun · 3 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot
Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.
Sound
Pronunciation
Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.
Received-Pronunciation:/ˈfʊtfɔːl/
General-American:/ˈfʊtˌfɔl/
General-American:/-ˌfɑl/
General-American:Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
CMU ARPABET:F UH1 T F AO2 L
Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.
1
noun
Meaning 1
The sound made by a footstep; also, the footstep or step itself.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: countable
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
2
noun
Meaning 2
The number of pedestrians going into or passing through a place (especially a commercial venue such as a shop) during a specified time period; also, the pedestrians in a particular place regarded collectively; foot traffic.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: Malaysia, uncountable
Examples
However, footfall is still below pre-Covid levels while there is also a surge of incoming supply. - "Are There Too Many Retail Malls In Malaysia?", BFM 89.9
Once up, the cross-border RTS project, which can ferry an expected peak capacity of up to 10,000 passengers per hour per direction between Singapore’s Woodlands North MRT station and Bukit Chagar station in Johor Bahru, will lead to a significant increase in footfall in the area. - The Straits Times
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
3
noun
Meaning 3
the sound of a step of someone walking
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
Examples
he heard footsteps on the porch
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: footstep, step
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: sound
Narrower terms: tramp
History
Etymology
From foot (“part of the human leg below the ankle”) + fall (“act of moving to a lower position under the effect of gravity”, noun).
Across languages
Translations
18 source translations are retained for this English entry.
Armenian:
ոտնաձայն
(otnajayn)
— sound made by a footstep
Old Armenian:
ոտնաձայն
(otnajayn)
— sound made by a footstep
Catalan:
peuada
— sound made by a footstep
Catalan:
trepig
— sound made by a footstep
Finnish:
askeleen ääni
— sound made by a footstep
Finnish:
askelten ääni
— sound made by a footstep
Finnish:
askelääni
— sound made by a footstep
Ancient Greek:
βῆμᾰ
(bêmă)
— sound made by a footstep
Macedonian:
топот
(topot)
— sound made by a footstep
Polish:
tupot
— sound made by a footstep
Russian:
то́пот
(tópot)
— sound made by a footstep
Serbo-Croatian:
topot
— sound made by a footstep
Serbo-Croatian:
bat
— sound made by a footstep
Serbo-Croatian:
zvuk koraka
— sound made by a footstep
Tagalog:
yabag
— sound made by a footstep
Tagalog:
yapak
— sound made by a footstep
Zulu:
isígqi
— sound made by a footstep
Finnish:
jalankulkijamäärä
— number of pedestrians going into or passing through a place during a specified time period; pedestrians in a particular place regarded collectively
