carbon footprint

noun

: the amount of greenhouse gases and specifically carbon dioxide emitted by something (such as a person's activities or a product's manufacture and transport) during a given period

Examples of carbon footprint in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

This gave Gates, from the use of his private jet alone, the same carbon footprint as a small town in Burundi. —Literary Hub, 5 Nov. 2025

Prince William's visit to Brazil for his Earthshot Prize climate change project drew criticism on social media over his carbon footprint. —Jack Royston, MSNBC Newsweek, 5 Nov. 2025

The idea could help Google meet a portion of the soaring demand for compute, but also reduce its carbon footprint on Earth, where data centers are increasing greenhouse gas emissions and have drawn criticism from environmentalists. —Reed Albergotti, semafor.com, 4 Nov. 2025

Despite these drawbacks, dryland cotton offers notable sustainability advantages, including a smaller carbon footprint compared to other cotton varieties. —Angela Velasquez, Sourcing Journal, 3 Nov. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1999, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for carbon footprint

• blueprint
• imprint
• misprint
• newsprint
• nonprint
• preprint
• reprint
• clint
• dint
• glint
• hint
• lint

Kids Definition

carbon footprint

noun

: the amount of greenhouse gases and especially carbon dioxide given off by something (as a person's activities or a product's manufacture and transport) during a given period