Step — Meaning, Definition & Synonyms

noun verb /ˈstep/

Meaning & Definition of Step

Step (noun)

  1. a rest for the foot in ascending or descending
  2. one of a series of structures consisting of a riser and a tread
  3. a ladder rung

Step (verb)

  1. to move by raising the foot and bringing it down elsewhere or by moving each foot in succession
  2. dance
  3. to go on foot, walk

Step (noun) — Senses, Synonyms & Antonyms

  1. an action planned or taken to achieve a desired result

    "took steps to ensure that there would be no more incidences of food poisoning"

    similar: expedient, means, measure, move, shift
    related: act, action, deed, doing, feat, thing, course, procedure, proceeding, process, accomplishment, achievement, attainment, coup, exploit, success, triumph, activity, affair, business, dealing, enterprise, event, attempt, crack, endeavor, essay, fling, go, initiative, operation, pass, shot, stab, trial, try, undertaking, whack, effort, exertion, labor, pains, trouble, while, work, project, proposal, proposition, makeshift, resort, resource, stopgap, countermeasure, countermove, counterstep

  2. an individual part of a process, series, or ranking

    "the manual enumerates every step in the procedure for shutting down the assembly line"

    similar: chapter, cut, degree, grade, inch, notch, peg, phase, place, point, stage
    related: angle, aspect, facet, side, amount, measure, plane, decrement, increment

  3. the mark or impression made by a foot

    "steps in the sand leading into the water and back out again"

    similar: footmark, footprint, footstep, trace, vestige
    related: hoofprint, pug, spoor, track, tread

  4. the direction along which something or someone moves

    "their steps led them through a long corridor"

    similar: course, line, path, pathway, route, routeway (chiefly British), track, way
    related: circle, circuit, loop, orbit, arc, flight path, trajectory, ascent, descent

  5. a very small distance or degree

    "he lives just a step away from his elderly mother, so he's there if she needs him for any reason"

    similar: ace, hair, hairbreadth, hairline, hop, skip, and jump, inch, neck, shouting distance, stone's throw
    related: bit, crumb, dab, iota, jot, minim, mite, particle, smidgen, trace, trifle
    opposite: country mile, long haul, mile
    near: infinity, light-year

Step (verb) — Senses, Synonyms & Antonyms

  1. to go on foot

    "I stepped across the street for a quick lunch at the new diner"

    similar: ambulate, foot (it), hoof (it), leg (it), pad, traipse, tread, walk
    related: parade, promenade, march, pace, step out, stride, troop, power walk, hike, peregrinate, trek, amble, mosey, perambulate, ramble, saunter, stroll, wander, clump, stomp, stump, tramp, trample, tromp, footslog, plod, trudge, gimp, hobble, limp, mince, prance, pussyfoot, tiptoe, bounce, sashay, stalk, strut, swagger, falter, lumber, lurch, pound, scuff, shamble, shuffle, stagger, stumble, toddle, waddle, nip, tap, trip, trot

  2. to perform a series of usually rhythmic bodily movements to music

    "she was in her element, happily stepping around the dance floor"

    similar: dance, foot (it), hoof (it), shake a leg, trip the light fantastic
    related: prance, strut, trip, boogie, bop, fox-trot, gavotte, jig, jitterbug, jive, mambo, polka, shag, shimmy, shuffle, tango, tap-dance, twist, waltz, tread

  3. to proceed or move quickly

    "many people wanted to linger before the president's bier, but guards kept the line of mourners stepping forward"

    similar: barrel, belt, blast, blaze, blow, bolt, bomb (slang), bowl, breeze, bundle, bustle, buzz, cannonball, careen, career, chase, course, crack (on), dash, drive, fly, hare, hasten, hie, highball, hotfoot (it), hump, hurl, hurry, hurtle, hustle, jet, jump, motor, nip, pelt, race, ram, rip, rocket, run, rush, rustle, scoot, scurry, scuttle, shoot, speed, tear, travel, trot, whirl, whisk, zip, zoom, beat it, get a move on, make tracks, shake a leg, step on it
    related: beetle, dart, flit, scamper, scud, scuffle, stampede, streak, whiz, gallop, jog, sprint, accelerate, quicken, step out, catch up, fast-forward, outpace, outrun, outstrip, overtake, arrow, beeline
    opposite: crawl, creep, poke
    near: dally, dawdle, dillydally, drag, hang (around or out), lag, linger, loiter, poke, tarry, amble, lumber, plod, saunter, shuffle, stroll, decelerate, slow (down or up)

Related Entry: Step (along) (verb)

Step (along) is a different word from Step. The synonyms below are for step (along), not for step.

  1. to leave a place often for another

    "now that my ride's here, I'll be stepping along"

    similar: bail, bail out, begone, book (slang), bug off, bug out, bugger off (British slang), buzz (off), clear off (chiefly British), clear out, cut out, depart, dig out, exit, get, get off, go, go off, move, pack (up or off), part, peel off, pike (out or off), pull out, push off, push on, quit, run along, sally (forth), scarper (British), shove (off), take off, vamoose, walk out, beat it, hit the road, pull stakes, take a hike, take a powder
    related: set out, start, strike out, abscond, decamp, escape, evacuate, flee, fly, get out, mizzle (chiefly British), run away, scat, scram, skip, go out, light out, step out, abandon, desert, forsake, vacate, emigrate, adjourn, remove, retire, retreat, withdraw
    opposite: arrive, come, show up, turn up
    near: abide, dwell, lodge, remain, settle, stay, tarry, approach, close, near, hit, land, reach

Related Entry: Step aside (from) (verb)

Step aside (from) is a different word from Step. The synonyms below are for step aside (from), not for step.

  1. to give up (a job or office)

    "a newscaster who knew when it was time to step aside from the anchor desk and let a younger person take over"

    similar: bag, chuck, leave, quit, resign (from), retire (from), step down (from), give notice
    related: abandon, vacate, drop out (of), throw up
    opposite: keep, stay (at)
    near: hire (out), join, sign on (for)

  2. to give up (as a position of authority) formally

    "the prime minister was compelled to step aside from his office when it was demonstrated that he had violated the public trust"

    similar: abdicate, abnegate, cede, relinquish, renounce, resign, step down (from), surrender
    related: abjure, demit, deny, disavow, disclaim, disown, waive, forsake, give up, hand over, yield, abandon, desert, quit, vacate
    near: appropriate, arrogate, assume, claim, confiscate, seize, take over, usurp, wrest, defend, guard, protect, safeguard, secure

Related Entry: Step-by-step (adjective)

Step-by-step is a different word from Step. The synonyms below are for step-by-step, not for step.

  1. proceeding or changing by steps or degrees

    "the incessant step-by-step advance of the enemy's troops could no longer be resisted"

    similar: gradational, gradual, incremental, phased, piecemeal
    related: progressive, stepped, tapered, imperceptible, inching, decrescent, increscent
    opposite: abrupt, sudden
    near: discontinuous, saltatory, acute, sharp, changeable, dynamic, meteoric, volatile

Related Entry: Step-down (noun)

Step-down is a different word from Step. The synonyms below are for step-down, not for step.

  1. the amount by which something is lessened

    "took a huge step-down in income when she switched from a law career to one in social work"

    similar: abatement, decline, decrease, decrement, dent, depletion, depression, diminishment, diminution, drop, drop-off, fall, falloff, loss, reduction, shrinkage
    related: deduction, subtraction, downturn, slip, slump, curtailment, cut, cutback, retrenchment, shortening
    opposite: boost, enlargement, gain, increase, increment, raise, rise, step-up, uptick
    near: accretion, accrual, accumulation, addition, supplement, continuation, extension, upswing, uptrend, upturn

Related Entry: Step down (from) (verb)

Step down (from) is a different word from Step. The synonyms below are for step down (from), not for step.

  1. to give up (a job or office)

    "with the advent of his 90th birthday, he could no longer resist calls for him to step down from chairmanship of the board"

    similar: bag, chuck, leave, quit, resign (from), retire (from), step aside (from), give notice
    related: abandon, vacate, drop out (of), throw up
    opposite: keep, stay (at)
    near: hire (out), join, sign on (for)

  2. to give up (as a position of authority) formally

    "even in the face of a palace revolt, Queen Elizabeth I refused to step down from the throne"

    similar: abdicate, abnegate, cede, relinquish, renounce, resign, step aside (from), surrender
    related: abjure, demit, deny, disavow, disclaim, disown, waive, forsake, give up, hand over, yield, abandon, desert, quit, vacate
    near: appropriate, arrogate, assume, claim, confiscate, seize, take over, usurp, wrest, defend, guard, protect, safeguard, secure

Related Entry: Step in (verb)

Step in is a different word from Step. The synonyms below are for step in, not for step.

  1. to make a brief visit

    "I just stepped in to say hi on my way to class"

    similar: call, come by, come over, drop by, drop in, pop (in), run (over), run in, stop (by or in), visit
    related: barge (in), look up, see, bop (into), happen (by), frequent, hang (at), haunt, resort (to)

  2. to serve as a replacement usually for a time only

    "couldn't find anyone to step in for me so that I could take a break from my caregiving duties"

    similar: cover, fill in, pinch-hit, stand in, sub, substitute, take over
    related: understudy, relieve, spell, double (as)

Related Entry: Step out (verb)

Step out is a different word from Step. The synonyms below are for step out, not for step.

  1. to be sexually unfaithful

    "if she catches him stepping out on her, she'll divorce him without a moment's hesitation"

    similar: cheat, philander, screw around
    related: cat (around), fool around, fornicate, play (around), tomcat (around), womanize, copulate, couple, lie, make out, mate, sleep, lust

  2. to stop living

    "my greedy relatives are only being nice to me because they expect me to step out any time now"

    similar: check out, conk (out), croak (slang), decease, demise, depart, die, drop, end, exit, expire, fall, flatline, go, kick in (slang), kick off (slang), part, pass (on), pass away, peg out (chiefly British), perish, pop off, succumb, bite the dust, buy it, give up the ghost, kick the bucket, snuff it (British)
    related: predecease, consume, disappear, dry up, fade, fail
    opposite: breathe, live
    near: come to, revive, linger, be, exist, subsist, flourish, prosper, thrive

  3. to take part in social activities

    "waited until a year after her husband's death before stepping out again"

    similar: associate, fraternize, go out, hobnob, mingle, mix, socialize, rub elbows
    related: carouse, party, revel, circulate
    near: avoid, eschew, shun, slight, snub

Related Entry: Step-up (noun)

Step-up is a different word from Step. The synonyms below are for step-up, not for step.

  1. something added (as by growth)

    "there's been a step-up in productivity since regular breaks were offered"

    similar: accretion, accrual, addendum, addition, augmentation, boost, expansion, gain, increase, increment, more, plus, proliferation, raise, rise, supplement, uptick
    related: accumulation, assemblage, collection, gathering, complement, accession, appendix, continuation, extension, uptrend, upturn, jump, run-up, spike
    opposite: abatement, decline, decrease, decrement, depletion, diminishment, diminution, drop-off, fall, falloff, lessening, loss, lowering, reduction, shrinkage, step-down
    near: deduction, subtraction

Synonyms, Thesaurus & Another Word for Step

The most common words with a similar meaning to Step:

Chiefly British: routeway
Slang: bomb
expedient, means, measure, move, shift, chapter, cut, degree, grade, inch, notch, peg, phase, place, point, stage, footmark, footprint, footstep, trace, vestige, course, line, path, pathway, route, track, way, ace, hair, hairbreadth, hairline, hop, skip, and jump, neck, shouting distance, stone's throw, ambulate, foot (it), hoof (it), leg (it)

Antonyms & Opposite Words for Step

Words with the opposite meaning of Step:

country mile, long haul, mile, crawl, creep, poke

Related Words for Step

act, action, deed, doing, feat, thing, procedure, proceeding, process, accomplishment, achievement, attainment, coup, exploit, success, triumph, activity, affair, business, dealing, enterprise, event, attempt, crack, endeavor, essay, fling, go, initiative, operation

Near Antonyms of Step

infinity, light-year, dally, dawdle, dillydally, drag, hang (around or out), lag, linger, loiter, tarry, amble, lumber, plod, saunter, shuffle, stroll, decelerate, slow (down or up)

Word Forms of Step

Inflections: stepped, stepping, steps

Derived words: steplike (adjective), stepped (adjective)

Origin & Etymology of Step

Middle English, from Old English stæpe; akin to Old High German stapfo step, stampfōn to stamp

First known use: before 12th century

Vocabulary Lists & Topics for Step

Words & Phrases Containing Step

step-, step aerobics, step aside, step-by-step, step dance, step down, step-down

Frequently Asked Questions about Step

What does "Step" mean?

"Step" means a rest for the foot in ascending or descending. As an a noun and a verb, it is defined as: a rest for the foot in ascending or descending. It has 8 distinct senses.

What is another word for "Step"?

Other words for "Step" include expedient, means, measure, move, shift, chapter, cut and degree. The best synonym depends on which meaning of "Step" you intend.

What are different ways to say "Step"?

There are 279 words and phrases with a similar meaning to "Step". Common alternatives include expedient, means, measure, move, shift, chapter, cut, degree, grade and inch.

What is the opposite of "Step"?

Antonyms of "Step" include country mile, long haul, mile, crawl, creep and poke. Near antonyms include infinity, light-year, dally and dawdle.

How do you use "Step" in a sentence?

Examples of "Step" in a sentence: "took steps to ensure that there would be no more incidences of food poisoning"; "the manual enumerates every step in the procedure for shutting down the assembly line"; "steps in the sand leading into the water and back out again".

Is "Step" a noun, verb, or adjective?

"Step" can be used as a noun and a verb, depending on the context.

Is "Step" useful for IELTS, TOEFL, and other English exams?

As an A2-level word, "Step" is typical of Cambridge A2 Key (KET), PTE Academic 30–42, TOEIC Listening & Reading 225+.

How do you pronounce "Step"?

"Step" is pronounced /ˈstep/.