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ladder
[ lad-er ]
noun
- a structure of wood, metal, or rope, commonly consisting of two sidepieces between which a series of bars or rungs are set at suitable distances, forming a means of climbing up or down.
- something resembling this.
- a means of rising, as to eminence:
the ladder of success.
- a graded series of stages or levels in status; a hierarchical order of position or rank:
high on the political ladder.
- Nautical. companionway ( def 1 ).
- Chiefly British. a run in a stocking.
verb (used with object)
- to climb or mount by means of a ladder:
to ladder a wall.
- to furnish with a ladder:
to ladder a water tower.
- Chiefly British. to cause a run in (a stocking).
verb (used without object)
- Chiefly British. to get a run, as in a stocking.
- to gain in popularity or importance:
He laddered to the top of his profession.
ladder
/ ˈlædə /
noun
- a portable framework of wood, metal, rope, etc, in the form of two long parallel members connected by several parallel rungs or steps fixed to them at right angles, for climbing up or down
- any hierarchy conceived of as having a series of ascending stages, levels, etc
the social ladder
- anything resembling a ladder
- ( as modifier )
ladder stitch
- Also calledrun a line of connected stitches that have come undone in knitted material, esp stockings
verb
- to cause a line of interconnected stitches in (stockings, etc) to undo, as by snagging, or (of a stocking) to come undone in this way
Other Words From
- lad·der·less adjective
- lad·der·like lad·der·y adjective
Word History and Origins
Word History and Origins
Origin of ladder1
Idioms and Phrases
see bottom of the ladder .Example Sentences
It was the kind of experience that will stay with him for years to come as he climbs the soccer ladder.
A ladder that fell from another vehicle triggered the accident.
Back at the wall, the smuggler placed a ladder on the Iranian side, and cut the razor wire at the top to create a path for migrants.
Though it might be a “generational problem,” she said, women grew up believing that only one woman can succeed, whether that woman is getting the man or climbing the ladder.
Firefighters used four water bowsers, two aerial ladder platforms, and a high volume pump to tackle the flames.
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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
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