a weakness or hidden flaw in the character of a greatly admired or respected person:
He was disillusioned to find that even Lincoln had feet of clay.
any unexpected or critical fault.
People are said to have “feet of clay” if they are revealed to have a weakness or flaw that most people were unaware of: “When the coach was arrested for drunken driving, the students realized that their hero had feet of clay.”
A failing or weakness in a person’s character, as in The media are always looking for a popular idol’s feet of clay. This expression comes from the Bible (Daniel 2:31–33), where the prophet interprets Nebuchadnezzar’s dream of a statue with a head of gold and feet of iron clay. [ c. 1600 ]
- Feet on the ground
see: both feet on the ground
[feez, feyz] /fiz, feɪz/ noun, Dialect. 1. a state of vexation or worry. 2. a violent rush or impact. /fiːz/ verb 1. (transitive) to beat 2. to drive off 3. (mainly US) to disconcert; worry noun 4. a rush 5. (mainly US) a state of agitation
FEF abbr. forced expiratory flow forced expiratory flow
adjective phrase Surfeited or overdosed with caffeine (1980s+ Students)