(0. Eng. hlaeder; of Teutonic origin, cf. Dutch leer, Ger. Leiter; the ultimate origin is in the root seen in "lean," Gr. icXI aE), a set of steps or "rungs" between two supports to enable one to get up and down; usually made of wood and sometimes of metal or rope. Ladders are generally movable, and differ from a staircase also in having only treads and no "risers." The term "Jacob's ladder," taken from the dream of Jacob in the Bible, is applied to a rope ladder with wooden steps used at sea to go aloft, and to a common garden plant of the genus Polemonium on account of the ladder-like formation of the leaves. The flower known in England as Solomon's seal is in some countries called the "ladder of heaven."

Bibliography Information
Chisholm, Hugh, General Editor. Entry for 'Ladder'. 1911 Encyclopedia Britanica. https://www.studylight.org/encyclopedias/eng/bri/l/ladder.html. 1910.

Bible Encyclopedias Ladder

1911 Encyclopedia Britannica

Bible Encyclopedias
Ladder