Jacob's ladder
- noun
- /ˈdʒeɪkəbs ˈlædər/
:
escalera de cuerda
- For safety drills, the crew practiced descending the Jacob's ladder into the lifeboat.
Examples
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The sailors quickly climbed the Jacob's ladder to reach the ship's deck.
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A Jacob's ladder was lowered over the side to help the inspectors board the vessel.
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The sailor climbed up the Jacob's ladder to reach the deck.
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Have you ever seen a Jacob's ladder on a ship?
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The crew used a Jacob's ladder to board the tall ship safely from the dock.
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During the emergency drill, the sailors practiced using the Jacob's ladder to evacuate.
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To access the upper deck, the sailors quickly ascended the Jacob's ladder swinging from the ship.
Synonyms
202
1.0
A frame with steps used to climb up or down
4
3.4
A ladder made of ropes and wooden steps used when a regular ladder cannot be used
A rope ladder with wooden or metal steps that you use to board a ship from a small boat
A rope or chain with steps used to climb between a ship and small boats
A ladder lowered from a ship to let people climb aboard from the water or a small boat
A portable stair that hangs over the side of a ship to let people get to a boat or pier
Surface Forms
Morphology
Jacob's + ladder
The constituent 'ladder' makes clear this is some kind of ladder, but the possessive proper name 'Jacob's' does not transparently indicate the specific form (a hanging rope or chain ladder) or nautical use. The phrase is a conventionalized name for a particular type of ladder, so a B1 learner would guess it's a ladder but would not reliably infer the precise meaning or form without prior exposure.
Etymology
Jacob's ladder is a hanging rope ladder named after the Bible story where Jacob saw a ladder reaching to 'heaven'; because the ladder has many rungs in a row, sailors and others used that name for a simple hanging ladder.