footfall

1. (countable) The sound made by a footstep; also, the footstep or step itself.Examples: "[L]ike Hedg-hogs vvhich / Lye tumbling in my bare-foote vvay, and mount / Their pricks at my foot-fall: ſometime am I / All vvound vvith Adders, vvho vvith clouen tongues / Doe hiſſe me into madneſſe: […]"; "They are treading fast and thick. For weeks you could have heard a foot-fall."; "At last I slid off into a light doze, and had pretty nearly made a good offing towards the land of Nod, when I heard a heavy footfall in the passage, and saw a glimmer of light come into the room from under the door."countable

2. (uncountable, originally and chiefly British) The number of pedestrians going into or passing through a place (especially a commercial venue such as a shop) during a specified time period; also, the pedestrians in a particular place regarded collectively; foot traffic.Examples: "This stir of change and these perpetual echoes of the moving footfall, haunt the land. Men move eternally, still chasing Fortune; and, fortune found, still wander."; "With high-street stores desperate to increase footfall and buck the financial downturn, retailers have started issuing discount vouchers."; "John Betjeman enjoyed travelling on the line and said that, when he retired, he'd like to be the station master at Blake Hall, which was the stop before Ongar until it (Blake Hall) was closed permanently in 1981, its passenger footfall being down to six a day, or twelve, depending on whether you're counting passengers or feet."uncountable