Liberal Dictionary English Dictionary
adjective
- having flatfeet.
- taking or showing an uncompromising stand in a matter; firm and explicit: a flatfooted denial.
- clumsy or plodding; maladroit: flatfooted writing.
- catch one flatfooted, to catch one unprepared; surprise: The amount of the bill caught us flatfooted.
adjective
- having flatfoot
- British informal
- clumsy or awkward
- downright and uncompromising
- informal off guard or unawares (often in the phrase catch flat-footed)
c.1600, “with flat feet;” meaning “unprepared” is from 1912, U.S. baseball slang, on notion of “not on one’s toes;” earlier in U.S. colloquial use it meant “straightforwardly, downright” (1828), from notion of “standing firmly.”
see caught flat-footed.