stair

[ stair ]
See synonyms for: stairstairs on Thesaurus.com

noun
  1. one of a flight or series of steps for going from one level to another, as in a building.

  2. stairs, such steps collectively, especially as forming a flight or a series of flights: I was so excited I ran all the way up the stairs.

  1. a series or flight of steps; stairway: a winding stair.

Origin of stair

1
before 1000; Middle English stey(e)r,Old English stǣger; cognate with Dutch, Low German steiger landing; akin to sty1

Other words from stair

  • stairless, adjective
  • stairlike, adjective

Words Nearby stair

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use stair in a sentence

  • The remote control contains mode selections for standing, walking, sitting, and stair up and down modes that the user can select.

  • The smiling president immediately joked with the crowd, “I was so fired up, I missed a stair!”

  • The young lady, hearing his step, turned round and stood on the stair, confronting him fiercely.

    Checkmate | Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu
  • He made no further remark as they descended the darker section of the stair, and she could think of nothing to say to him.

    Ancestors | Gertrude Atherton
  • As Isabel walked carefully down the slippery stair she veiled her eyes to hide the wonder in them.

    Ancestors | Gertrude Atherton
  • He's in the room now, only one away from this, next the stair head, and Vargers is put to keep the door in the same room.

    Checkmate | Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu
  • As they there stand for a minute under the lamp, Mr. Longcluse, gazing at him sternly from the stair, caught his eye.

    Checkmate | Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

British Dictionary definitions for stair

stair

/ (stɛə) /


noun
  1. one of a flight of stairs

  2. a series of steps: a narrow stair

Origin of stair

1
Old English stæger; related to stīg narrow path, stīgan to ascend, descend, Old Norse steigurligr upright, Middle Dutch steiger ladder

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012