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Glite Dictionary
moving stairway

moving stairway

3.1
A set of steps that move to carry people between floors
  • noun
  • /ˈmuːvɪŋ ˈstɛrweɪ/
translation icon : escalera mecánica
  • When the moving stairway stopped unexpectedly, passengers had to walk the rest of the way.

Examples

  • Please stand on the right side of the moving stairway to allow others to pass.

  • The moving stairway carried shoppers effortlessly to the next level of the mall.

  • I took the moving stairway to the second floor.

  • Have you ever used a moving stairway in a mall?

  • The airport has a moving stairway that helps passengers quickly reach the terminal from the parking lot.

  • The moving stairway made it easy for the elderly visitors to access the upper floors of the museum.

  • During the mall renovation, they installed a new moving stairway to improve accessibility between the shopping levels.

Synonyms

escalator
vsmoving stairway
46 1.2

A moving staircase that carries people between floors

refers to steps running on a belt without emphasizing motor power
moving staircase
vsmoving stairway
3.5

A stairway with moving steps that carries people between floors

is the same concept but uses a different fixed name

How Convenient

jetway
  • US
3 3.7
moving stairway
3.1
ramp
163 1.6

Surface Forms

moving stairway singular
moving stairways plural

Morphology

moving + stairway

The meaning is directly compositional: 'moving' modifies 'stairway' to mean a stairway that moves (i.e., an escalator). This follows a standard adjective+noun construction and has clear cross-linguistic parallels, so a B1 learner who knows both words can infer the meaning.

Etymology

Moving stairway is a literal name: people imagined a stairway that was moving on a belt to carry people between floors. That's why it means a stair system that moves people, now often called an 'escalator'.