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

See Examples For:

scaling ladder

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

The flames were licking around the scaling ladder, which was already blazing.

From The Gray Dawn by White, Stewart Edward

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

From The Lost House by Davis, Richard Harding

The hold was about half full of cotton bales, railroad ties, oakum, resin, and the like, and they descended to them by means of a scaling ladder, clambering thence toward the forward bulkhead.

From Dan Merrithew by McFall, J. V.

So, up he went, deserting the faithful scaling ladder on the roof, for the time being.

From The Voice on the Wire by Ball, Eustace Hale