rung

1 of 2

past participle of ring

rung

2 of 2

noun

ˈrəŋ 

1

a

: a rounded crosspiece between the legs of a chair

b

: one of the crosspieces of a ladder

2

Scotland : a heavy staff or cudgel

3

: a spoke of a wheel

4

: a level in a hierarchy

rise a few rungs on the social scale

—H. W. Van Loon

Synonyms

Noun

• degree
• echelon
• footing
• level
• place
• position
• rank
• ranking
• reach(es)
• situation
• standing
• station
• status
• stratum

Examples of rung in a Sentence

Noun

He was on the bottom rung on the corporate ladder.

the top rung of society

the lowest rung of the pay scale

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

On his first earnings call since calling off the tie-up, Christie suggested that the true threats to airline competition were the likes of American Air Lines, Delta Airlines, United Airlines, and Southwest Airlines, a few rungs up the marketshare ladder from Spirit and JetBlue. —Melvin Backman, Quartz, 6 May 2024

No one buys it: she's demoted—down many, many rungs—into data entry. —Tom Gliatto, Peoplemag, 4 May 2024

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English, from Old English hrung crossbar; akin to Goth hrunga staff and perhaps to Old English hring ring — more at ring

First Known Use

Noun

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1b

Phrases Containing rung

• get/have one's bell rung

Kids Definition

rung

1 of 2

past participle of ring entry 3

rung

2 of 2 noun

ˈrəŋ 

: a rounded part placed as a crosspiece between the legs of a chair

also : one of the crosspieces of a ladder

Medical Definition

rung

past part of ring