Webfeet

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A term describing the condition where feet have a structure adapted for swimming, typically having webbing between the toes
2. Also refers to the feet of certain aquatic animals, like ducks, which assist in locomotion in water
3. It can also denote a characteristic of some reptiles and amphibians, allowing them to navigate their wet environments more effectively

Etymology: "Webfeet" is simply the plural of "webfoot", a noun for a foot with skin stretched between the toes. The word began as "webbed foot", and over time speakers reshaped that phrase into a single compound, "webfoot", as if it were built from "web" and "foot". The original sense is the one that matters here: the word describes a physical structure, the membrane that lets a foot push through water like a paddle. Because "webfoot" is a compound of two plain English words, the history is straightforward, and its sense has stayed close to the literal one. Its plural simply counts the feet, so "webfeet" can refer to the feet of several animals at once, such as the feet of ducks or frogs, or to the characteristic they share.

Synonyms: flippers, paddles