to step on
95
1.0
- phrasal verb
- /stɛp ɑn/
:
pisar
- Frank retrieves the coins, clumsily stepping on the TV remote control.
- step on a mine
It's time for me to step on the stage.
- It's time for me to step on the stage.
- Yeah, I got him, but I had to step on him with my barefoot.
- This time, if they so much as step on our toes, we'll take their heads.
- The car just is slow and when you step on it, it feels slow.
- It was he's talking shit from from the time we step on the field right.
- I literally step on either side of this thing.
- And he accidentally steps on a landmine and blows himself up.
- One assaulter had stepped on a nail that had gone through his boot.
- I understand floods and earthquakes and the urge to step on ants.
- You just, you know, you step on my toe.
- It just happens the moment you step on the throttle.
Examples
-
When a sharp pain stabbed my foot, I knew without looking I'd stepped on a scorpion.
Fiction book (1993) -
You can step on my feet anytime.
-
OK, trying not to step on Michael.
-
With your right foot, step on the glass.
-
Could you step on it, please?
-
And Thomas proceeds to step on my glasses, breaking them apart.
-
It's like when you step on your pet's leash while walking.
-
I must make sure not to step on any cracks in the pavement.
Fiction book (1993) -
Haplo shook himself out of his reverie, stirred briskly to action, and nearly stepped on the animal.
Fiction book (1991) -
He accidentally stepped on my foot while trying to get off the bus.
Synonyms
93
3.0
To step on something with your foot, often pressing down
7
3.3
To put your foot on something, often by accident
Antonyms
How Hard
Surface Forms
Morphology
step + on
The figurative sense 'to treat someone badly / hurt their feelings' is a metaphorical extension of the literal action of putting a foot on someone or something, so a learner who knows 'step' and 'on' can plausibly infer a harming/pressing meaning. However, the specific pragmatic nuance of asserting power or gaining advantage and the idiomatic usage in contexts is not fully predictable without prior exposure, so it is only partially transparent.
Etymology
The verb step on comes from a simple picture: you step and press on something with your foot, often by accident, like stepping on a sharp shell. So it means 'to place or press the foot onto something'.