Foot"ing, n. 1.
Ground for the foot; place for the foot to rest on; firm
foundation to stand on.
In ascent, every step gained is a footing and
help to the next.
Holder.
2. Standing; position; established place;
basis for operation; permanent settlement; foothold.
As soon as he had obtained a footing at court,
the charms of his manner . . . made him a favorite.
Macaulay.
3. Relative condition; state.
Lived on a footing of equality with
nobles.
Macaulay.
4. Tread; step; especially, measured
tread.
Hark, I hear the footing of a man.
Shak.
5. The act of adding up a column of figures;
the amount or sum total of such a column.
6. The act of putting a foot to anything;
also, that which is added as a foot; as, the footing of a
stocking.
7. A narrow cotton lace, without
figures.
8. The finer refuse part of whale blubber,
not wholly deprived of oil. Simmonds.
9. (Arch. & Enging.) The thickened or
sloping portion of a wall, or of an embankment at its foot.
Footing course (Arch.), one of the
courses of masonry at the foot of a wall, broader than the courses
above. -- To pay one's footing, to pay a
fee on first doing anything, as working at a trade or in a shop.
Wright. -- Footing beam, the tie beam of
a roof.