Search Result for "escalator": 
Wordnet 3.0

NOUN (2)

1. a clause in a contract that provides for an increase or a decrease in wages or prices or benefits etc. depending on certain conditions (as a change in the cost of living index);
[syn: escalator clause, escalator]

2. a stairway whose steps move continuously on a circulating belt;
[syn: escalator, moving staircase, moving stairway]


The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Escalator \Es"ca*la`tor\, n. [NL. Cf. Escalade.] A stairway or incline arranged like an endless belt so that the steps or treads ascend or descend continuously, and one stepping upon it is carried up or down; -- originally a trade term, which has become the generic name for such devices. Such devices are in common use in large retail establishments such as department stores, and in public buildings having a heavy traffic of persons between adjacent floors. [Webster 1913 Suppl. +PJC]
WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006):

escalator n 1: a clause in a contract that provides for an increase or a decrease in wages or prices or benefits etc. depending on certain conditions (as a change in the cost of living index) [syn: escalator clause, escalator] 2: a stairway whose steps move continuously on a circulating belt [syn: escalator, moving staircase, moving stairway]