Definition of toehold
1a : a hold or place of support for the toes (as in climbing)b (1) : a means of progressing (as in surmounting barriers) (2) : a slight footing used his money to get a toehold, then a foothold, then a near stranglehold on the political economy — R. W. Armstrong
2 : an illegal wrestling hold in which the aggressor bends or twists the other wrestler's foot
From the M-W Editors
Examples of toehold in a Sentence
American companies looking for toeholds in foreign markets.
Recent Examples of toehold from the Web
-
July 18, 2017 —After six years of war, nearly 100,000 civilian casualties, and rising foreign intervention, Syria has a toehold on peace.
-
Russia had a toehold on its American colony but the company in charge of the possession wasn't turning a profit.
-
Back then Peerless had a Chicago toehold at the Elston Avenue location of Strack & Van Til, the grocery chain owned by Peerless's main distributor, Central Grocers.
-
MATIAS J. OCNER For the Miami Herald Sullivan Street has gotten an immediate toehold in several major neighborhoods.
-
MATIAS J. OCNER For the Miami Herald Sullivan Street has gotten an immediate toehold in several major neighborhoods.
-
Slack offers a toehold in the workplace and a potential place to market any and all office needs.
-
On Friday, the Syrian coalition established its first toehold on the Iraqi border in three years, with the help of Russian airstrikes against Islamic State militants.
-
Most agreed that the next logical step was to establish some sort of toehold in low Earth orbit, a kind of space station, in the early 1970s after the Moon landings.
These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'toehold.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
First Known Use of toehold
1880
TOEHOLD Defined for English Language Learners
toehold
playDefinition of toehold for English Language Learners
-
: a place where your toes may be placed when you are climbing a cliff, a mountain, etc.
-
: a position that makes it possible to begin an activity or effort
Learn More about toehold
Seen and Heard
What made you want to look up toehold? Please tell us where you read or heard it (including the quote, if possible).
Writing? Check your grammar now!