escalator

Definition

Anything that escalates.

Etymology

From the former trademark Escalator, created by American inventor Charles Seeberger in 1900, from Latin e (“from, out of”) + scala (“ladder”) + -tor, which forms nouns of agency. See the appendix. Broader usage may be influenced by escalate, and is equivalent to escalate + -or. For an alternative etymology, see the Online Etymology Dictionary.

Example Sentences

• "Fourth, communication researchers study the role of stress and negative attitudes as key contributors to conflict, anger as an escalator of conflict, and emotional residues as barriers to reconciliation."
• "There is a plastic molly-guard covering the escalator's shutdown button to prevent little kids from pushing it and stopping the escalator."
• "It was the Earls Court installation on the Piccadilly tube, opened on October 4, 1911, which really began the successful career of the escalator in this country. At first the public mistrusted it, and a wooden-legged man called "Bumper" Harris was engaged to travel up and down all day to give passengers confidence. Today there are 181 escalators at 57 London Transport stations."

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