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.
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
For Japanese people, as for immigrants from other nations, land was a foothold on the American dream.
—
Equal Justice Initiative, USA Today, 6 Nov. 2025
Along with her promotional tours, Fanning’s maintained her foothold in fashion.
—Julia Teti, Footwear News, 6 Nov. 2025
The release also has competitive implications, especially as OpenAI looks to challenge rival AI company Anthropic’s growing foothold among enterprise customers.
—Beatrice Nolan, Fortune, 5 Nov. 2025
The thefts are part of a trend in the Bay Area that began when the burgeoning tech industry first gained a foothold in Silicon Valley.
—Nate Gartrell, Mercury News, 5 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for foothold
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Equal Justice Initiative, USA Today, 6 Nov. 2025
Along with her promotional tours, Fanning’s maintained her foothold in fashion.
—Julia Teti, Footwear News, 6 Nov. 2025
The release also has competitive implications, especially as OpenAI looks to challenge rival AI company Anthropic’s growing foothold among enterprise customers.
—Beatrice Nolan, Fortune, 5 Nov. 2025
The thefts are part of a trend in the Bay Area that began when the burgeoning tech industry first gained a foothold in Silicon Valley.
—Nate Gartrell, Mercury News, 5 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for foothold
Cite this Entry
“Foothold.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/foothold. Accessed 12 Nov. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share