a mark left by the shod or unshod foot, as in earth or sand.
2.
an impression of the sole of a person's foot, especially one taken for purposes of identification.
3.
Informal. the track of a tire, especially on wet pavement.
4.
a unique set of characteristics, actions, etc., that leave a trace and serve as a means of identification: Be careful when you post on social media—your online footprint could harm your reputation.
The tumors share the same genetic footprint.
5.
the area affected by an increase in the level of sound or noise, as that generated by an airplane.
6.
Telecommunications. the area of the earth's surface within which a communications satellite's signals can be received.
7.
Aerospace. the area within which it is predicted that a spacecraft or its debris will land.
8.
the surface space of a desk or tabletop occupied by a piece of equipment, especially a computer or other electronic device.
9.
the surface area occupied by any structure, device, etc.:
The new store will have a large footprint.
10.
the impact that humans have on the environment, especially in the utilization of natural resources: China's water footprint;
ways to reduce our environmental footprint.
11.
any impact or effect, or its scope:
the company’s wide footprint across Puerto Rico.
12.
Also called ecological footprint. the amount of biologically productive land and ocean area required to sustain the resource consumption and waste production of an individual, population, or human activity: measured in global acres or hectares.
13.
Computers. the amount of memory or disk space required by a program.
In advance of that footprint as suddenly dropped another.
Even a cow has a water footprint, drinking four gallons of water to produce one gallon of milk.
The shape of the tracks and their arrangement roughly resemble a large human footprint, and so the legendary explanation was born.
Many deliver distance education to out-of-state students to expand their geographic footprint.
They do their part in educating students and helping them reduce their possibly harmful footprint.
Jurors also appreciated that the buildings have strong visual impact yet occupy a minimal footprint on the land.
The couple purchased an inexpensive desk, sawed off the back legs to reduce its footprint, and bolted it to the wall studs.
There will be two galleries in the footprint of the garage, as shown below.
Even the lightest military footprint would result in civilian casualties, he warned.
He put his money where his mouth was and worked to change the course of business, aiming high to create a zero-footprint business.
British Dictionary definitions for footprint
footprint
/ˈfʊtˌprɪnt/
noun
1.
an indentation or outline of the foot of a person or animal on a surface
2.
the shape and size of the area something occupies: enlarging the footprint of the building, a computer with a small footprint
3.
impact on the environment
4.
a military presence: since 1944, America's military footprint in Europe has been in the West
5.
(computing) the amount of resources, such as disk space and memory, that an application requires See also electronic footprint
6.
an identifying characteristic on land or water, such as the area in which an aircraft's sonic boom can be heard or the area covered by the down-blast of a hovercraft
7.
the area in which the signal from a direct broadcasting satellite is receivable
Word Origin and History for footprint
n.
1550s, from foot (n.) + print. Related: Footprints. Old English had fotspor, fotswæð.
Slang definitions & phrases for footprint
footprint
noun
A history of activity; record; track record: Reporters were wondering about the Justice's footprint(1990s+)
The horizontal space needed for a machine, appliance, etc: The new computers have a very small footprint(1990s+)
footprint in Technology
1. The floor or desk area taken up by a piece of hardware. 2. The amount of disk or RAM taken up by a program or file. 3. (IBM) The audit trail left by a crashed program (often "footprints"). See also toeprint. [Jargon File] (1995-04-25)