English Explanatory Dictionary

step

English dictionary entry

Meanings

noun
  1. An advance or movement made from one foot to the other; a pace.
  2. A rest, or one of a set of rests, for the foot in ascending or descending, as a stair, or a rung of a ladder.
  3. The part of a spade, digging stick or similar tool that a digger's foot rests against and presses on when digging; an ear, a foot-rest.
  4. The button joining a glass's stem to its foot.
  5. A distinct part of a process; stage; phase.
  6. A running board where passengers step to get on and off the bus.
  7. The space passed over by one movement of the foot in walking or running.
  8. A small space or distance.
  9. A print of the foot; a footstep; a footprint; track.
  10. A gait; manner of walking.
  11. Proceeding; measure; action; act.
  12. A walk; passage.
verb
  1. To move the foot in walking; to advance or recede by raising and moving one of the feet to another resting place, or by moving both feet in succession.
  2. To walk; to go on foot; especially, to walk a little distance.
  3. To walk slowly, gravely, or resolutely.
  4. To dance.
  5. To move mentally; to go in imagination.
  6. To set, as the foot.
  7. To fix the foot of (a mast) in its step; to erect.
  8. To advance a process gradually, one step at a time.
  9. To depart.
  10. To be confrontational.
noun
  1. A stepchild.
  2. A stepsibling.
name
  1. Initialism of Smart Traveler Enrollment Program.
  2. Acronym of Sixth Term Examination Paper.

Pronunciation

/stɛp/ En-us-step.ogg

Word forms

step steps stepping stepped stept stope

Etymology

Etymology tree Proto-Germanic *stapjaną Proto-West Germanic *stappjan Old English stæppan Middle English steppen English step From Middle English steppen, from Old English steppan (“to step, go, proceed, advance”), stepe (“step”), from Proto-West Germanic *stappjan, from Proto-Germanic *stapjaną (“to step”), *stapiz (“step”), from Proto-Indo-European *stebʰ- (“to support, stomp, curse, be amazed”). Cognate with West Frisian stappe (“to step”), North Frisian stape (“to walk, trudge”), Dutch stappen (“to step, walk”), Walloon steper (“to walk away, leave”), German stapfen (“to trudge, stomp, plod”) and further to Slavic Polish stąpać (“to stomp, stamp, step, tread”), Russian ступать (stupatʹ) and Polish stopień (“step, stair, rung, degree”), Russian степень (stepenʹ). Related to stamp, stomp.

Synonyms

stride

Antonyms

step off

Related words

step-

Derived words

13th step a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step baby step between-step body step bootstep catch step catstep clownstep coaster step corbie-step corbie step counterstep crowstep dance step doorstep eigenstep Eureka step false step fire step fish steps forestep goose step half-step hardstep high-step hoofstep instep in step interstep Irish step dancing kick-step lockstep macrostep mast step metastep microstep midstep multistep naughty step oblique step one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind one-step one step ahead one step at a time out of step pawstep Penrose steps pep in one's step Pinoy step rest step retrace one's steps route step single-step smoothstep spring in one's step stair-step stairstep step aerobics stepback
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