understep

English

Etymology

under- +‎ step

Verb

understep (third-person singular simple present understeps, present participle understepping, simple past and past participle understepped)

1. Not to go as far as a boundary or limit.
   • 1897, Boot and Shoe Recorder - Volume 30, page 28:

     The Questers were many, and fortunately the Answerer did not too often overstep or understep the mark.

   • 1963, G. A. Rauche, The philosophy of actuality, page 89:

     For the moment I experience the conflict as suffering and bear it, I no longer really move within problematic actuality but understep it.

   • 1967, The Phi Delta Kappan - Volume 49, Issues 1-10, page 282:

     They will understep and overstep the bounds of propriety, and even of legality.

   • 1989, United States. Congress. Senate. Committee on Governmental Affairs. Subcommittee on Government Information and Regulation, Reauthorization of the Paperwork Reduction Act:

     Either one of them overstep or understep their bounds at any one point in time.

   • 2007, Andrew Stevenson, Studying Psychology, →ISBN, page 57:

     If you're working on a structured question check the number of marks allocated for each part of the question and divide up your words accordingly. Finally, don't understep the word limit.

2. To take a step that is not far enough forward.
   • 1907, University of Nebraska (Lincoln campus). Agricultural Experiment Station, Annual Report - Nebraska Agricultural Experiment Station:

     As an instance of this inability to control the muscles well, may be cited the almost constant tendency to understep or overstep especially with the fore legs.

   • 1945, North eastern reporter. second series - Volume 60, page 499:

     If a sense of feeling gave him some knowledge of the width of the steps the fact that the third step was ⅝ of an inch wider could not cause him to overstep, but if it had any effect it would tend to cause him to understep.

   • 2004, Johnny D. Hoskins, Geriatrics and Gerontology of the Dog and Cat, →ISBN, page 358:

     Cerebellar dysfunction is characterized by truncal ataxia, a broad-based stance, dysmetria in which the limbs either overstep (hypermetria) or understep (hypometria), and tremor that is most pronounced when the animal attempts a goal-orientated movement (intention tremor).

3. To have a gait in which the hind foot touches the ground behind the point where the front foot touches the ground.
   • 1932, Douglas Gordon, Field Philosophy, page 187:

     As a general rule, a stag treads more cleanly than a hind, his stride is longer, the slot itself being rounder and less elongated ; while a hind or young stag understeps frequently, leaving in consequence a more or less double track.

Noun

understep (plural understeps)

1. A gait in which the hind feet touch the ground behind the point where the front feet touch the ground.
   • 2010, Louis Liebenberg, Adriaan Louw, Mark Elbroch, Practical Tracking: A Guide to Following Footprints and Finding Animals, →ISBN:

     The resulting trail is an understep walk—the hind tracks in each pair register behind the front tracks.

   • 2012, Jonathan Poppele, Animal Tracks: Midwest Edition, →ISBN, page 27:

     A few animals, such as bison, commonly use an understep walk, while several species, including black bears, cougars and pronghorn regularly use an overstep walk.

   • 2012, Lawrence Mark Elbroch, Michael Kresky, Jonah Evans, Field Guide to Animal Tracks and Scat of California, →ISBN, page 49:

     Therefore, an understep (where the hind track lies behind the front track) is probably a slower gait than a direct-registering walk where the hind lies on top of the front, and both are probably slower than an overstep walk, where the hind track registers beyond the front track.

2. A step that acts as a base to hold something.
   • 2009, Gretchen A. Hirschauer, Catherine A. Metzger, Peter Cherry, Luis Meléndez: Master of the Spanish Still Life, page 10:

     Written in minuscule script and placed on the shaded understep at the feet of the Virgin, the pious dedication was appropriate for the subject and its intended location.

3. The underside of a step.
   • 1984, Edie Lee Cohen, Sherman R. Emery, Dining by design, page 118:

     In the back room and understeps, recessed lights are used.

   • 1984, Marc Lovell, How green was my apple, →ISBN, page 74:

     He hit his head on an understep and slammed back down again, gasping with pain.

   • 2016, Amy Ignatow, The Mighty Odds, →ISBN:

     Jay had discovered the understeps before they had even gotten to middle school.

4. A movement in which one understeps.
   • 2012, Adam Wolfberg, Fragile Beginnings: Discoveries and Triumphs in the Newborn ICU, →ISBN:

     Understeps were easy to detect, as the paw missed the rung entirely and the rat had to catch itself so it didn't stumble.

Adjective

understep (not comparable)

1. Underneath a step.
   • 2000, FY 2000 Budget Request of the District of Columbia Courts:

     Escalator modernization including handrail speed monitors, Safe-T- Brakes, emergency stop relocation, understep lighting, reconditioning of steps and related improvements.

Anagrams

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