noun
stepladder; steps
A portable, self-supporting ladder with flat steps, commonly used for household tasks like changing light bulbs or reaching high shelves.
電球を交換するために脚立を使った。
I used a stepladder to change the light bulb.
脚立を広げて、棚の上の荷物を取った。
I opened the stepladder and took down the items from the top shelf.
The reading きゃたつ is a phonetic shift from 脚榻 (きゃくとう), where 榻 means a low platform or stool. The kanji 脚立 is a later variant using 立 (stand) to reflect the self-supporting nature of the ladder.