as in unprepared
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Recent Examples of flat-footed
The United States isn’t alone in being caught flat-footed.
—
Brynn Tannehill, The Atlantic, 31 Mar. 2026
The Rangers had some early success using it to clog the middle of the ice, but too often got caught flat-footed and were left vulnerable to odd-man rushes.
—Vincent Z. Mercogliano, New York Times, 2 Oct. 2025
But the person also predicted that some of crypto’s allies in Washington could be caught flat-footed by the banking ramp-up.
—Rachel Witkowski, semafor.com, 15 Sep. 2025
Interestingly the Milei administration appeared to have been caught flat-footed by the news.
—Agustino Fontevecchia, Forbes.com, 27 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for flat-footed
Brynn Tannehill, The Atlantic, 31 Mar. 2026
The Rangers had some early success using it to clog the middle of the ice, but too often got caught flat-footed and were left vulnerable to odd-man rushes.
—Vincent Z. Mercogliano, New York Times, 2 Oct. 2025
But the person also predicted that some of crypto’s allies in Washington could be caught flat-footed by the banking ramp-up.
—Rachel Witkowski, semafor.com, 15 Sep. 2025
Interestingly the Milei administration appeared to have been caught flat-footed by the news.
—Agustino Fontevecchia, Forbes.com, 27 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for flat-footed
Recent Examples of Synonyms for flat-footed
Adjective
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Photographers who have worked in primarily low-stakes environments may technically produce beautiful images but are often unprepared for the particular demands that come with elaborate, multi-vendor productions.—
Ascend Agency,
Chicago Tribune,
27 May 2026
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This car will induce whiplash in the unprepared and expletives from those who have been forewarned.—
Tim Stevens,
ArsTechnica,
26 May 2026
Adjective
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The drawdowns have left the US underprepared for potential conflict with Russia or China; in particular, replacing stockpiles of air-defense missiles — critical to supporting Taiwan should China invade — could take six years, The Wall Street Journal reported.—
Semafor Events,
semafor.com,
24 Apr. 2026
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As a result, too many students with learning differences spend their school years being underestimated, undertaught, and ultimately underprepared.—
Sherri Helvie,
New York Daily News,
19 Apr. 2026
Adjective
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Andrews has gone viral multiple times for demystifying how ballroom dancers get ready, and, more specifically, unready.—
Meredith Wilshere,
PEOPLE,
12 Apr. 2026
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If Orion is deemed unready for the TLI burn, Artemis 2 will get no farther than Earth orbit.—
Mike Wall,
Space.com,
2 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Flat-footed.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/flat-footed. Accessed 1 Jun. 2026.
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