A stepladder is the short folding ladder you keep at home for reaching high things — changing a light bulb, painting a ceiling, getting a box down from the top of a cupboard. It has two flat sides joined at the top like the letter A: one side has the steps you climb, the other side is just legs to hold it up. Because those two sides spread apart, it stands on its own in the middle of a room, and it does not need to lean against a wall. That is the whole difference from an ordinary ladder, which is one long straight piece and must rest against something. When the job is done, the two sides fold together flat so you can carry it and store it behind a door. The steps are usually wide and flat — more like small shelves than the thin round bars of a big ladder — so you can stand on one comfortably while you work. Most stepladders are small, three to six steps, made of aluminium or plastic. If someone just says "ladder" while pointing at one of these, that is normal and not a mistake; "stepladder" is the exact word when the difference matters. It is written as one word, and "step ladder" as two words is also seen.

（A字型的）折疊梯、鋁梯、人字梯。台灣家裡那種可以自己站著、用完折起來收好的就是它；一般口語常常直接叫「梯子」。跟要靠牆的長梯不同。