adjective Of an animal: having feet which are naturally flat; of a horse: having hoofs with soles close to the ground.
Bears are flat-footed animals.
adjective Of a person: having the physical condition of flat feet (“a condition where the soles of the feet are in full contact with the ground, either because the arches have collapsed or because they never developed”).
adjective Of a thing (especially a rail): having a flat base; flat-bottomed.
adjective Blunt and unsubtle; lacking finesse; clumsy.
They were caught flat-footed when Clancy filed to enter the race.
adjective Blunt and unsubtle; lacking finesse; clumsy.
adjective Unprepared, unready.
They were caught flat-footed when Clancy filed to enter the race.
adjective Direct, downright, straightforward; also, holding firmly to and maintaining a decision; standing one's ground.
verb simple past and past participle of flat-foot.