'heavy-footed' originates from English, specifically the combination of the adjective 'heavy' and the adjective-forming use of 'foot' + '-ed', where 'heavy' meant 'weighing a lot' and the suffix '-ed' formed an adjective meaning 'having feet or a particular manner of stepping'.

'heavy' comes from Old English 'hefig' and 'foot' comes from Old English 'fōt'; the compound 'heavy-footed' is a descriptive Modern English formation combining these elements.

Initially the components meant 'weighing a lot' (heavy) and 'foot' (a part of the leg); over time the compound came to mean 'walking with heavy steps' or 'clumsy in movement'.