any maneuver made as part of progress toward a goal
• "the situation called for strong measures" • "the police took steps to reduce crime"
syn: measure
the distance covered by a step
• "he stepped off ten paces from the old tree and began to dig"
syn: footstep, pace, stride
the act of changing location by raising the foot and setting it down
support consisting of a place to rest the foot while ascending or descending a stairway
• "he paused on the bottom step"
syn: stair
relative position in a graded series
• "always a step behind" • "subtle gradations in color" • "keep in step with the fashions"
syn: gradation
a short distance
• "it's only a step to the drugstore"
syn: stone's throw
the sound of a step of someone walking
• "he heard footsteps on the porch"
syn: footfall, footstep
a musical interval of two semitones
syn: tone, whole tone, whole step
a mark of a foot or shoe on a surface
• "the police made casts of the footprints in the soft earth outside the window"
syn: footprint, footmark
a solid block joined to the beams in which the heel of a ship's mast or capstan is fixed
a sequence of foot movements that make up a particular dance
• "he taught them the waltz step"
syn: dance step