Footrail

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A horizontal bar or rail positioned low down where a person can rest their feet while seated
2. A low support bar, such as on a bar stool or at the end of a bed, for resting the feet
3. A rail set near the floor on which the feet can be propped up for comfort while sitting

Etymology: "Footrail" is a plain compound: a rail for the feet, formed by putting "foot" and "rail" side by side. Its parts are both ordinary English words, so the word needs no borrowed or classical roots to explain it. The "rail" element comes from Old French "reille," a bar or pole, which is the same source behind the rails of a fence or a railway, and "foot" is the body part, so the word literally names a bar set low enough to rest the feet on. Most of the word's meaning is carried by that literal construction. A footrail is typically the horizontal bar running along the foot of a bed frame, a stool, or a bar stool, where a sitter can hook their heels. The compound shows the everyday English habit of building new nouns from two concrete words, with the first naming the part of the body and the second naming the structure.

Synonyms: footrest