scaling ladder

American  

noun

1. a ladder for climbing high walls.

---

scaling ladder British  

noun

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

---

Etymology

Origin of scaling ladder

Middle English word dating back to 1350–1400

Example Sentences

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)

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

From The Lost House by Davis, Richard Harding

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

Here, however, I was less fortunate, there being no way of entering the building, save by walking in through the gate, or climbing the walls with the help of a scaling ladder.

From Two Gallant Sons of Devon A Tale of the Days of Queen Bess by Hodgson, Edward S.

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