rung
- 01 B2 Upper Intermediate
one of the horizontal bars that you step on when climbing a ladder.
a horizontal crosspiece forming a step of a ladder.
Simple“He climbed carefully, making sure his foot was firm on each rung.”
In context“The wooden ladder was so old that the bottom rung snapped under the weight of the heavy equipment.”
- 02 B2 Upper Intermediate
a position or level in a system, like a job or social group.
a specific level or stage within a hierarchical structure, such as a career path or social class.
Simple“Starting as an intern is the first rung on the career ladder.”
In context“She spent ten years working her way up to the highest rung of the corporate hierarchy.”
From Middle English rung, from Old English hrung, from Proto-West Germanic hrungu, from Proto-Germanic hrungō. Cognate with Dutch rong (“pole, stanchion”), German Runge (“stake, pole, stanchion”), Gothic 𐌷𐍂𐌿𐌲𐌲𐌰 (hrugga, “a staff”).
See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.