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

A scaling ladder, it may be explained to the uninitiated, is about eight feet long—a single fire-proof bar, on which are short cross-pieces.

From The Voice on the Wire by Ball, Eustace Hale

Immediately King Philip once more planted his scaling ladder, but his ally disappeared around the house.

From Chicken Little Jane by Ritchie, Lily Munsell

Every rung of the scaling ladder being raised for the storming of the German defences on land and sea was planed and polished in the British Foreign Office.

From The Crime Against Europe A Possible Outcome of the War of 1914 by Casement, Roger

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