wrong-foot
verb
wrong-footed; wrong-footing; wrong-foots
chiefly British
: to cause (someone, such as an opponent in soccer or tennis) to lean into or step with the wrong foot
broadly
: to disrupt the equilibrium of
a speed and flexibility that repeatedly wrong-footed his enemies —
Anthony Lloyd
Anthony Lloyd 
Examples of wrong-foot in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
The French superstar sprung free down the left with a ball over the top before wrong-footing Alejandro Remiro in goal.
—Ben Morse, CNN, 6 Mar. 2024
The face is more graven these days, but the gnashing grin and the wry tone of his delivery are unchanged, as is Dafoe’s knack for wrong-footing us; his wicked characters are as hard to dislike as his virtuous ones are to trust.
—Anthony Lane, The New Yorker, 17 Mar. 2023
Ben Morse, CNN, 6 Mar. 2024
The face is more graven these days, but the gnashing grin and the wry tone of his delivery are unchanged, as is Dafoe’s knack for wrong-footing us; his wicked characters are as hard to dislike as his virtuous ones are to trust.
—Anthony Lane, The New Yorker, 17 Mar. 2023
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'wrong-foot.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
First Known Use
1928, in the meaning defined above
Articles Related to wrong-foot
Dictionary Entries Near wrong-foot
Cite this Entry
“Wrong-foot.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/wrong-foot. Accessed 16 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share