Anthropometric unit of measurement conventionally defined as one-sixth of the height of a well-proportioned man. The foot (29.65 cm) was the unit of the system of length measures adopted by the Romans and other peoples of antiquity. Divided into 12 parts (ounces), the foot remained in use in medieval and modern times until the introduction of the decimal metric system. Divided into 12 inches, the foot (abbreviation: ft) is still used in Anglo-Saxon countries.