I. lad‧der¹ S3 /ˈlædə $ -ər/ noun [countable]
[Language: Old English; Origin: hlæder]

1. a piece of equipment used for climbing up to or down from high places. A ladder has two bars that are connected by rungs (=short bars that you use as steps):
She climbed up the ladder.
He hurt himself falling off a ladder. ⇒ rope ladder, stepladder

2. a series of levels which someone moves up and down within an organization, profession, or society
career/corporate ladder
Stevens slowly worked his way up the corporate ladder.
Becoming a doctor would be a step up the social ladder.
the first step on the ladder of success

3. British English a long thin hole in stockings or tights where some stitches have broken Synonym : run American English:
Yes, I know I’ve got a ladder in my tights.
⇒ Snakes and Ladders

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲

II. ladder² verb [intransitive and transitive]
British English if stockings or tights ladder, or if you ladder them, a long thin hole is made in them because some stitches have broken Synonym : run American English

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲

ladder
noun
I. piece of equipment for climbing up sth
ADJ. rickety | wooden | loft, rope
VERB + LADDER ascend, clamber up, climb (up), mount, go up He went up the ladder onto the deck.
come down, descend, go down | put up We put up the ladder and went to get the paint.
fall off, step off
PREP. on/up a/the ~ She was up a ladder mending the roof.
down a/the ~ I was standing lower down the ladder.
~ to the ladder to the gallery
PHRASES the bottom/foot of a ladder, a rung/step of a ladder Several of the ladder's rungs were broken.
the top of a ladder

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲

ladder
II. levels in a system
ADJ. evolutionary, social the people at the top of the social ladder
career, corporate, housing, promotion
VERB + LADDER ascend, climb, move up She was anxious to move up the promotion ladder.
get onto
PREP. higher up the ~ creatures higher up the evolutionary ladder
lower down the ~ | ~ of the ladder of fame
~ to helping her on the ladder to success
PHRASES get/have one foot on the ladder He finally managed to get one foot on the career ladder.
a rung/step on the ladder the old problem of how to get onto the first step on the ladder

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲

ladder

climb (up/down) a ladder
He climbed the ladder up to the diving platform.
go up/down a ladder
Be careful going down the ladder!
come up/down a ladder
Dickson came up the ladder from the engine room.
descend a ladder formal (=climb down)
He closed the hatch and descended the ladder.
fall off a ladder
One of the builders fell off a ladder and broke his leg.
a rung of a ladder (=the part you put your foot on)
The first rung of the ladder was broken.
a step of a ladder (=the part you put your foot on)
The can of paint was balanced on one of the steps of the ladder.
the foot of a ladder (=the bottom of a ladder)
Zach waited at the foot of the ladder while Sam climbed up.
the bottom/top of a ladder
She sighed with relief when she reached the bottom of the ladder.

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲

setback a problem that stops you from making progress:
The space program suffered a major setback when the space shuttle, Discovery, exploded.
snag informal a problem, especially one that you had not expected:
There’s a snag – I don’t have his number.
hitch a small problem that delays or prevents something:
There have been a few last-minute hitches.
trouble when something does not work in the way it should:
The plane developed engine trouble.
hassle spoken a situation that is annoying because it causes problems:
Just trying to store all this stuff is a hassle.
tear to damage paper or cloth by pulling it too hard, or letting it touch something sharp:
She unwrapped the present carefully, trying not to tear the paper.
I tore a hole in my jacket, climbing over the fence.
rip to tear something quickly or violently:
Beth excitedly ripped open the package.
Stop pulling my dress! You’ll rip it!
split to tear your trousers or shirt when you put them on, because they are too tight for you:
He bent down and split his trousers.
Oh no, now I’ve split my shirt.
ladder British English if a woman ladders her tights or STOCKINGS, she tears them so that a long thin line appears in them:
Damn! I’ve laddered my tights!
shred to deliberately destroy letters, documents etc by cutting them into thin pieces, often by using a special machine:
In order to prevent fraud, it’s best to shred your bank statements.
I went through all my papers shredding things I didn’t need.
frayed torn a little along the edges – used about clothes, carpets etc that have been used a lot:
He was wearing an old pair of frayed jeans.
The rug was a little frayed around the edges.
The jacket was a little frayed at the cuffs.

[TahlilGaran] English Thesaurus ▲

tear to damage paper or cloth by pulling it too hard, or letting it touch something sharp:
She unwrapped the present carefully, trying not to tear the paper.
I tore a hole in my jacket, climbing over the fence.
rip to tear something quickly or violently:
Beth excitedly ripped open the package.
Stop pulling my dress! You’ll rip it!
split to tear your trousers or shirt when you put them on, because they are too tight for you:
He bent down and split his trousers.
Oh no, now I’ve split my shirt.
ladder British English if a woman ladders her tights or STOCKINGS, she tears them so that a long thin line appears in them:
Damn! I’ve laddered my tights!
snag to catch a piece of clothing on something rough or sharp so that it tears slightly:
I snagged my shirt on a nail.
shred to deliberately destroy letters, documents etc by cutting them into thin pieces, often by using a special machine:
In order to prevent fraud, it’s best to shred your bank statements.
I went through all my papers shredding things I didn’t need.
frayed torn a little along the edges – used about clothes, carpets etc that have been used a lot:
He was wearing an old pair of frayed jeans.
The rug was a little frayed around the edges.
The jacket was a little frayed at the cuffs.

[TahlilGaran] English Thesaurus ▲