Translation guide
A staircase is a set of stairs, usually indoors, connecting floors. In Japanese, the most common word is 階段 (kaidan), but there are other terms for specific types or parts of a staircase.
The learner wants to refer to a standard staircase inside a building.
The most common and general word for staircase or stairs, used for indoor staircases in homes, offices, schools, etc.
階段を上ってください。
Please go up the stairs.
この階段は急ですね。
These stairs are steep, aren't they?
The learner wants to refer to stairs outside a building, like entrance steps or garden steps.
階段 can also be used for outdoor stairs, but sometimes 段々 (だんだん) or 石段 (いしだん) are more specific.
外の階段は滑りやすいです。
The outdoor stairs are slippery.
Refers to steps or a flight of steps, often outdoors or in a garden. Can also mean 'gradually' in other contexts.
Stone steps or a stone staircase, commonly found at temples, shrines, or traditional gardens.
The learner wants to describe a staircase that curves around a central pole.
Literally 'spiral staircase'. Used for both indoor and outdoor spiral staircases.
この螺旋階段は美しいですね。
This spiral staircase is beautiful, isn't it?
The learner wants to refer to a mechanical moving staircase.
The standard word for escalator. Not a staircase in the traditional sense, but often translated as 'moving staircase'.
エスカレーターで3階に行きます。
I'll go to the 3rd floor by escalator.
The learner wants to talk about the design or structure of a staircase.
Still the most common word, but can be modified with adjectives or compound words.
この建物の階段はとても広いです。
The staircase in this building is very wide.
Stairwell or staircase hall, the enclosed space containing the staircase.
The English word 'staircase' refers to a set of stairs, not a ladder. The Japanese word for ladder is 梯子 (はしご).
庭に段々を作りました。
We made steps in the garden.
神社の石段を登る。
Climb the stone steps of the shrine.
階段室は非常口です。
The stairwell is an emergency exit.