scaling ladder

American  

noun

1. a ladder for climbing high walls.

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scaling ladder British  

noun

1. a ladder used to climb high walls, esp one used formerly to enter a besieged town, fortress, etc

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Etymology

Origin of scaling ladder

Middle English word dating back to 1350–1400

Example Sentences

Meta styled Muse Spark as “the first step on our scaling ladder and the first product of a ground-up overhaul.”

From Barron's • Apr. 8, 2026

He learned to manage a horse, to climb a scaling ladder, to wield sword, battle-ax, and lance.

From Early European History by Webster, Hutton

If necessary, by means of this scaling ladder, he could work entirely from the outside.

From The Lost House by Davis, Richard Harding

Run the scaling ladder up or down, it doesn't much matter—there are hundreds of applicants for every round; and only one man can stand on each—and climb, as I mean to.

From Flamsted quarries by Nelson, G. Patrick

She said besides, that she was the first to place a scaling ladder on the bastile of the bridge, and as she raised it she was struck in the neck.

From Jeanne D'Arc: her life and death by Oliphant, Mrs. (Margaret)