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Glite Dictionary
light-footed

light-footed

1 4.2
Moving quickly and quietly with small graceful steps
  • adjective
  • /ˈlaɪtˌfʊtɪd/
translation icon : ligero de pies
  • This delicious beverage has made me feel marvelously light-footed.

Examples

  • Sprinters run high-headed and light-footed.

  • Sprinters run high-headed and light-footed.

    The Story of Seabiscuit (1949)

  • Beatrice walks ahead, light-footed and humming to herself.

    Fiction book (1993)

  • Imagine yourself as nimble and light-footed as Fred Astaire.

    Blog text (24)

  • They were light-footed and could compete with anyone; they were almost the best dancers on the arena grounds.

    Fiction book (2002)

  • I take a vacation from my usual head-down, bulldozer type of running to a more light-footed, dodging way of getting down the field.

    Fiction book (2000)

  • Beatrice walks ahead, light-footed and humming to herself.

  • Mark set off again, now at a light-footed jog.

Synonyms

agile
vslight-footed
23 3.7

Able to move quickly and easily like a gymnast

focuses more on light graceful steps rather than general whole-body nimbleness
light on one's feet
vslight-footed
  • Informal
4 4.8

Can move quickly and lightly like a dancer

is the single-word adjective naming that graceful quick movement
fast-footed
vslight-footed
1 4.8

Able to move the feet quickly and easily

highlights lighter more graceful stepping instead of pure speed
swift-footed
vslight-footed
5.2

Able to run very quickly on foot

leans toward graceful lightness but emphasizes pure speed intensity

Antonyms

heavy-footed
1 6.0

To walk with loud, slow steps because you are clumsy

How Agile

light-footed
1 4.2
nimble
20 4.4
awkward
33 3.0
clumsy
73 1.2

Surface Forms

light-footed positive

Morphology

light-footed = light + footed (transparent) = light + foot + ed

The adjective is formed by compounding 'light' and 'footed' (where 'footed' is transparently 'foot' + '-ed'), giving the clear meaning 'having light (nimble) feet'.

Etymology

Light-footed comes from the simple parts light ('not heavy') and footed ('with feet'), so you can picture someone whose feet feel very light. So light-footed means moving quickly and gracefully with easy steps.