follow in someone's footsteps
Copy another's path
To follow in someone's footsteps is to pursue the same path or career as someone who came before, typically a parent or mentor: She followed in her father's footsteps and became a doctor.
The phrase evokes walking where another has walked—choosing a route already proven passable.
It usually implies admiration or family tradition rather than mere imitation.
- apprenticeLearner bound to employer
- golden childFamily's most favored member
- role modelPerson others emulate
- successorOne who replaces another
- trackPath or monitored route
path · career path · heritage · print · matriarch · tradition · vocation · protégé · mentor · dynastic · craft · legacy · trailblazer · ambition · descendant · idolize · heir · next in line
follow in someone's footstepsblaze a trail
Create a new route
break new ground · pioneer · go one's own way · march to the beat of one's own drum · innovate
follow in someone's footstepsbreak the mold
Diverge from tradition
go against the grain · buck the trend · rebel · iconoclast · make a clean break
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