foothold

noun

foot·​hold ˈfu̇t-ˌhōld 

1

: a hold for the feet : footing

2

: a position usable as a base for further advance

The company secured a foothold in the market.

Synonyms of foothold

• base
• camp
• fortress

Examples of foothold in a Sentence

The army gained a foothold on the island.

The company has secured a foothold in the market.

Recent Examples on the Web

The New York representative has been a big name in the Democratic Socialists of America as socialists establish a political foothold in positions across the country. — Mackenzie Chase, The Washington Examiner, 1 Oct. 2026

Gossip Girl did find a foothold with teenagers and college students. — Victoria Edel, PEOPLE, 29 Sep. 2026

While bolstering CPUs, AMD also carved out a foothold in the graphics processors used for AI workloads, taking on Nvidia in a market that Cramer said is large enough to support multiple winners. — Alexa Lomonaco, CNBC, 28 Sep. 2026

India passed legislation curtailing online wagers last year, spoiling the value of gaming powerhouse Junglee after Flutter had paid $237 million to acquire 95% of the company looking to gain a foothold in the world’s most populated country. — Dan Bernstein, Sportico.com, 28 Sep. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

circa 1577, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for foothold

• ahold
• behold
• billfold
• blindfold
• cajoled
• consoled
• controlled
• cotswold
• eightfold
• enfold
• enrolled
• extolled

Kids Definition

foothold

noun

foot·​hold -ˌhōld 

1

: a hold for the feet : footing

2

: a position usable as a base for further advance