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.
An advance or movement made from one foot to the other; a pace.
Turning back, then, toward the basement staircase, she began to grope her way through blinding darkness, but had taken only a few uncertain steps when, of a sudden, she stopped short and for a little stood like a stricken thing, quite motionless save that she quaked to her very marrow in the grasp of a great and enervating fear.1914 November, Louis Joseph Vance, “An Outsider […]”, in Munsey’s Magazine, volume LIII, number II, New York, N.Y.: The Frank A[ndrew] Munsey Company, […], published 1915, →OCLC, chapter III (Accessory After the Fact), page 382, column 1:
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.
The breadth of every single step or stair should be never less than one foot.1624, Sir Henry Wotton, The Elements Of Architecture:
One morning I had been driven to the precarious refuge afforded by the steps of the inn, after rejecting offers from the Celebrity to join him in a variety of amusements. But even here I was not free from interruption, for he was seated on a horse-block below me, playing with a fox terrier.1897 December (indicated as 1898), Winston Churchill, chapter IV, in The Celebrity: An Episode, New York, N.Y.: The Macmillan Company; London: Macmillan & Co., Ltd., →OCLC:
1 more example
Through the open front door ran Jessamy, down the steps to where Kitto was sitting at the bottom with the pram beside him.1967, Barbara Sleigh, Jessamy, Sevenoaks, Kent: Bloomsbury, published 1993, →ISBN, page 122:
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
Arts, Crafts, Glassblowing, Hobbies, Lifestyle The button joining a glass's stem to its foot.
5
A distinct part of a process; stage; phase.
He improved step by step, or by steps.
The first step is to find a job.
6
A running board where passengers step to get on and off the bus.
The driver must have a clear view of the step in order to prevent accidents.
7
The space passed over by one movement of the foot in walking or running.
One step is generally about three feet, but may be more or less.
To derive two or three general principles of motion from phenomena, and afterwards to tell us how the properties and actions of all corporeal things follow from those manifest principles, would be a very great step in philosophy.1704, I[saac] N[ewton], “(please specify |book=1 to 3)”, in Opticks: Or, A Treatise of the Reflexions, Refractions, Inflexions and Colours of Light. […], London: […] Sam[uel] Smith, and Benj[amin] Walford, printers to the Royal Society, […], →OCLC:
8
A small space or distance.
It is but a step.
9
A print of the foot; a footstep; a footprint; track.
10
A gait; manner of walking.
The approach of a man is often known by his step.
Warwick passed through one of the wide brick arches and traversed the building with a leisurely step.1900, Charles W[addell] Chesnutt, chapter I, in The House Behind the Cedars, Boston, Mass.; New York, N.Y.: Houghton, Mifflin and Company […], →OCLC:
11
Proceeding; measure; action; act.
The reputation of a man depends on the first steps he makes in the world.1717, Alexander Pope, Preface to his collection of poems:
Beware of desperate steps. The darkest day, Live till to-morrow, will have passed away.c. 1792, William Cowper, The Needless Alarm:
2 more examples
I have lately taken steps[…]to relieve the old gentleman's distresses.1879, George Washington Cable, Old Creole Days:
Moon has also requested that government officials take additional steps to help fight pollution, his spokesman said.2019, VOA Learning English (public domain)
12
In plural A walk; passage.
Conduct my steps to find the fatal tree.1697, Virgil, “(please specify the book number)”, in John Dryden, transl., The Works of Virgil: Containing His Pastorals, Georgics, and Æneis. […], London: […] Jacob Tonson, […], →OCLC:
13
In plural A portable framework of stairs, much used indoors in reaching to a high position.
14
Nautical, Transport A framing in wood or iron which is intended to receive an upright shaft; specifically, a block of wood, or a solid platform upon the keelson, supporting the heel of the mast.
15
One of a series of offsets, or parts, resembling the steps of stairs, as one of the series of parts of a cone pulley on which the belt runs.
16
A bearing in which the lower extremity of a spindle or a vertical shaft revolves.
17
Entertainment, Lifestyle, Music The interval between two contiguous degrees of the scale.
Usage note: The word tone is often used as the name of this interval; but there is evident incongruity in using tone for indicating the interval between tones. As the word scale is derived from the Italian scala, a ladder, the intervals may well be called steps.
18
A change of position effected by a motion of translation.
A change of position effected by a motion of translation will be called a step.1878, William Kingdon Clifford, Elements of Dynamic: An Introduction to the Study of Motion:
back step, half step, etc. see under back, half, cyclic step
step
verb
Etymology
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.
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.
A “moving platform” scheme[…]is more technologically ambitious than maglev trains even though it relies on conventional rails. Local trains would use side-by-side rails to roll alongside intercity trains and allow passengers to switch trains by stepping through docking bays.2013 June 1, “Ideas coming down the track”, in The Economist, volume 407, number 8838, page 13 (Technology Quarterly):
2
To walk; to go on foot; especially, to walk a little distance.
Come one, come all. Step right up!
to step to one of the neighbors
2 more examples
Some days later it happened that young Heriotside was stepping home over the Lang Muir about ten at night, it being his first jaunt from home since his arm had mended.1902, John Buchan, The Outgoing of the Tide:
Well... It's hard to talk about in front of the children. Can we step outside?2004, Intelligent Systems, translated by Nintendo of America, Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door, Nintendo, GameCube, level/area: Twilight Town:
3
To walk slowly, gravely, or resolutely.
Home from his Morning-Task , the Swain retreats, His flock before him stepping to the fold.a. 1749 (date written), James Thomson, “Summer”, in The Seasons, London: […] A[ndrew] Millar, and sold by Thomas Cadell, […], published 1768, →OCLC:
4
To dance.
At arms length with left hands clasped they moved back where facing each other they stepped in time to their dance embrace.2013, Calvin Vraa, The Last Pathway Home, page 179:
She clapped, but instead of walking her back to the table, Alex took her hand and pulled her gently towards him, slipping his arm around her waist again and stepping her off on the first beat of the next dance.2013, Jean Fullerton, Call Nurse Millie:
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He stepped to the beat of one of their favorite songs.2017, Christine Schimpf, A Christmas Kind of Perfect:
He put on a tame version of the 1960s song “The Letter,” wrapped his right arm around my waist, raised my right hand, draped it over his left, and we stepped, stepped, and back stepped to the beat.2018, Paula Poundstone, The Totally Unscientific Study of the Search for Human Happiness, page 180:
5
Figuratively To move mentally; to go in imagination.
They are stepping almost three thousand years back into the remotest antiquity.1715–1720, Homer, translated by Alexander Pope, “Book preface”, in The Iliad of Homer, volume (please specify |volume=I to VI), London: […] W[illiam] Bowyer, for Bernard Lintott […], →OCLC:
6
To set, as the foot.
One of the women, Elsie, stepped her foot inside to help the woman.2010, Charles E. Miller, Winds of Mercy: 40 Short Stories, page 219:
7
Nautical, Transport To fix the foot of (a mast) in its step; to erect.
We put everything straight, stepped the long-boat's mast for our skipper, who was in charge of her, and I was not sorry to sit down for a moment.1898, Joseph Conrad, Youth:
8
To advance a process gradually, one step at a time.
Etymology tree English stepchildclip. Proto-Indo-European *(s)tew- Proto-Germanic *steupa- Proto-West Germanic *steupa- Old English stēop- Middle English step- English step- English sibling English stepsiblingclip. English step Clipping of stepchild and stepsibling.
[Krazy Kat, after complimenting a woman on her nice polite little child:] Boy or girl? [Woman:] Step – but well brung up.1934 September 6, George Herriman, Krazy Kat, comic strip, →ISBN, page 234:
So for Richard and Barbara, Jeff and Kari, the impossibly varied collection of steps and halves that is another legacy of my father.2016, Robert M. Herzog, A World Between: