barefoot

American

[bair-foot] / ˈbɛərˌfʊt /

adjective

Also barefooted. with the feet bare.

a barefoot boy;
to walk barefoot.
Carpentry. (of a post or stud) secured to a sill or the like without mortising.

barefoot British

/ ˈbɛəˌfʊt /

adjective

with the feet uncovered

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of barefoot

before 1000; Middle English barfot, Old English bærfōt. See bare ¹, foot

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Scores of bare-chested flagellants with covered faces walked barefoot through the dusty streets of Pampanga province's San Fernando as they flogged their backs with bamboo whips in scorching heat.

From Barron's • Apr. 3, 2026

Many people in our troubled country are apparently so eager for peace that they’ll join barefoot monks in colorful robes in walking halfway across the continent.

From Salon • Feb. 13, 2026

The song, performed on the programme barefoot, in a pair of golden-feathered trousers and a red shawl, was followed by a debut album last May.

From BBC • Jan. 19, 2026

“I saw kids barefoot out there, which is so cool.”

From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 14, 2026

He was barefoot, wearing a T-shirt that said Everything Is Everything and a pair of jeans.

From "Miracle's Boys" by Jacqueline Woodson

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023