footholds

noun

plural of foothold
as in bases
a place from which an advance (as for military operations) is made don't let the opposing team push us back down the field and gain a foothold

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Example Sentences

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.
Recent Examples of footholds The rock climbing section offers 10 lanes of varying heights, with plenty of handholds and footholds for beginners. — Camila Pedrosa, Sacbee.com, 22 Oct. 2026 By 1862, the Confederates’ largest city had already returned to United States control, and America’s armies already held footholds in every single Confederate state. — Literary Hub, 19 Oct. 2026 Some went to cities that have long been magnets for immigrants — New York, Miami — but increasingly, others found their way to smaller cities with less developed immigrant footholds. — Will Jarrett, Los Angeles Times, 17 Sep. 2026 The eldest among them had established early footholds in their careers before COVID hit. — Nick Lichtenberg, Fortune, 3 July 2026 As millions of Venezuelan refugees moved through Latin America, Tren de Aragua established criminal footholds along migration corridors, extending its reach into Colombia, Peru, Chile, Ecuador and eventually the United States. — Antonio María Delgado, Miami Herald, 1 July 2026 The latest report, from the Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime, also traced how Russia and Rwanda have established economic and security footholds in CAR alongside UAE trading networks. — Yinka Adegoke, semafor.com, 12 June 2026 Meanwhile, some of America’s largest AI companies have also established footholds on campus. — Jared Perlo, NBC news, 28 May 2026 The local voting also provides an opening for smaller parties, independents and outsider candidates to gain political footholds that would be far harder to achieve in national parliamentary races. — Inaya Folarin Iman, CBS News, 8 May 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for footholds
  1. bases
  2. camps
  3. fortresses
  4. bridgeheads
  5. stations
  6. centers
Noun
  • Spotify had guided to slower MAU growth in the third quarter, pointing to changes to products in emerging countries to help the company better monetize its user bases.
    — Georg Szalai, HollywoodReporter, 22 Oct. 2026
  • The technology could have important applications in space exploration, including providing electricity for future Moon bases, scientific instruments and long-duration space missions.
    — Prabhat Ranjan Mishra, Interesting Engineering, 22 Oct. 2026
Definition of bases
Noun
  • In Spain and Portugal, tent camps have sprung up in protests against unattainable rents and housing costs.
    — Teresa Medrano, Los Angeles Times, 19 Oct. 2026
  • James and Giannis Antetokounmpo were among the superstars praising Brunson when training camps opened.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 16 Oct. 2026
Definition of camps
Noun
  • The history of castles is, of course, also filled with gruesome details, and some of the most famous fortresses served as prisons and sites of torture and execution.
    — Andrea Margolis, FOXNews.com, 25 Oct. 2026
  • The structures include monasteries and fortresses that showcase the reign of the Lombards, who played a major role in the development of medieval European Christianity.
    — Evie Carrick, Travel + Leisure, 28 Sep. 2026
Definition of fortresses
Noun
  • Ukraine has sought to derail the Kremlin’s plans by launching counterattacks in the Dnipropetrovsk and Zaporizhzhia regions, where Russian forces have sought to carve out bridgeheads with an aim to advance toward the regional capitals, which are key industrial hubs.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 20 Mar. 2026
Definition of bridgeheads
Noun
  • Peppered between political content on the Bulletin’s social media feeds is a smattering of reels related to nonpolitical news, often featuring videos lifted directly from local TV stations.
    — Clara Harter, Los Angeles Times, 25 Oct. 2026
  • Defense Minister Guido Crosetto said in a social media post that the soldiers were only recently allowed to use plastic restraint ties and only in areas around train stations, not throughout the city.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 24 Oct. 2026
Definition of stations
Noun
  • The Russian Defense Ministry said in a statement that its forces carried out drone strikes on logistics centers, port infrastructure and three cargo ships in the port of Reni in the Odesa region.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 21 Oct. 2026
  • Paired with on-site energy storage, SSTs could turn data centers from blunt-force loads into more flexible participants in the grid.
    — Alex Pasternack, Scientific American, 20 Oct. 2026
Definition of centers

Browse Nearby Words

foothold
footholds
footing
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Cite this Entry

“Footholds.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/footholds. Accessed 27 Oct. 2026.

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