stair

noun

ˈster 

1

: a series of steps or flights of steps for passing from one level to another

—often used in plural but singular or plural in construction

… a narrow private stairs …

—Lewis Mumford

2

: a single step of a stairway

Examples of stair in a Sentence

She ran down the stairs.

He waited at the foot of the stairs.

She slipped and fell down the stairs.

The stairs lead to the roof.

We had to climb another flight of stairs to get to the roof.

He tripped on the bottom stair and almost fell.

Recent Examples on the Web

On the night of May 25, 2002, Hunter and Green attended a get-together at their neighbor’s apartment, where witnesses said an altercation between them ended with a tumble down a flight of stairs. —Cristóbal Reyes, The Orlando Sentinel, 14 Apr. 2026

Shawn flexed, and at the foot of the stairs, two women dressed like sexy Ash Ketchums, their costumes even skimpier than Shawn's, jumped up and down, and then Shawn rushed down the stairs to greet them and pulled them onto the small stage with him. —Danielle Parker, CBS News, 14 Apr. 2026

Cleaning the dust out of the corners of my stairs didn’t require nearly as much arm endurance, either. —Adam Campbell-Schmitt, Bon Appetit Magazine, 13 Apr. 2026

Airports have been closed, office blocks and residential towers hit, and lives disrupted in myriad ways by air raid sirens and nights spent hiding in bathrooms or under stairs. —Matthew Martin, semafor.com, 13 Apr. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Middle English steir, from Old English stǣger; akin to Old English & Old High German stīgan to rise, Greek steichein to walk

First Known Use

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing stair

• stair climber
• stair climbing
• stair stepper

Rhymes for stair

• air
• ayre
• bahr
• bare
• blare
• care
• chair
• claire
• ere
• err
• eyre
• fair

Kids Definition

stair

noun

ˈsta(ə)r 

ˈste(ə)r

1

: a series of steps or flights of steps for passing from one level to another

—often used in plural

ran down the stairs

2

: one step of a stairway