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

Relevance

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 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 The second generation, which began in the early 2000s, saw K-pop gain footholds in regional markets like China, Japan and Southeast Asia. — Jessie Yeung, CNN Money, 2 May 2026 The fact is that recent or older series can gain new footholds with modern viewers who haven’t seen them. — Brian Steinberg, Variety, 30 Apr. 2026 Additional footholds in Aspen and Hawaii follow a familiar pattern of buying adjacent homes within the same enclave. — Abby Montanez, Robb Report, 20 Apr. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for footholds
  1. bases
  2. camps
  3. fortresses
  4. bridgeheads
  5. stations
  6. centers
Noun
  • Athletics The Athletics are led by DH Brent Rooker, who hit 39 homers and stole 11 bases last year, and right fielder Lawrence Butler, an emerging star who added 22 homers and 18 steals.
    — Jim Bowden, The Athletic, 24 Mar. 2025
  • Washington Nationals The Nationals should take the next step forward as their young nucleus, led by shortstop CJ Abrams, who hit 20 homers and stole 31 bases last year, continues to develop and improve.
    — Jim Bowden, The Athletic, 24 Mar. 2025
Definition of bases
Noun
  • Ali Qader, the head of the rehabilitation center, said several children told him Colombians trained them at camps around the capital.
    — Sam Mednick, Los Angeles Times, 3 Aug. 2026
  • Defensive tackle Cam Heyward's first 15 camps were defined in part by what Tomlin likened to full-on sparring as opposed to shadowboxing.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 2 Aug. 2026
Definition of camps
Noun
  • On one side are those who build fortresses of predictability.
    — Nilton Bernini, Forbes.com, 27 July 2026
  • Libraries 'don't want to be fortresses' Neither Jackson, UCLA, nor UC Berkeley responded to requests for comment.
    — Marc Ramirez, USA Today, 15 July 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
  • Despite delays, service has resumed at regular stops in all stations for both directions.
    — Amethyst Martinez, USA Today, 4 Aug. 2026
  • With the discount in place, a company that only owns UHF stations would be able to reach 78 percent of US households, the Wheeler FCC said.
    — ArsTechnica, ArsTechnica, 4 Aug. 2026
Definition of stations
Noun
  • Their traditional decor centers around darker fabrics and pale wall coverings.
    — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 4 Aug. 2026
  • The transitional kindergarten growth has siphoned more lucrative 4-year-olds from their sites — as babies and toddlers require higher staff ratios and more intense care — putting even more centers at risk of closing, research showed.
    — Kate Sequeira, Los Angeles Times, 4 Aug. 2026
Definition of centers

Browse Nearby Words

foothold
footholds
footing
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Footholds.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/footholds. Accessed 7 Aug. 2026.

Copy Citation

More from Merriam-Webster on footholds

Nglish: Translation of footholds for Spanish Speakers

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of invidious

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

7 Pairs of Commonly Confused Words

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

'Sneaked' or 'Snuck': Which is correct?

Why does English have so many silent letters?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Words of the Week - Aug. 7

How long is a jiffy?
See More

Popular

See More

7 Pairs of Commonly Confused Words

The Longest Long Words List

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
fridge-magnet-letters
Drop a Letter Quiz August 2026 Drop a letter from a word to make a totally diffe...
See All