Merriam-Webster's Collegiate® Dictionary, 11th Edition
STILT
I. noun
Etymology: Middle English stilte; akin to Old High German stelza stilt
Date: 15th century
1. one of two poles each with a rest or strap for the foot used to elevate the wearer above the ground in walking, a pile or post serving as one of the supports of a structure above ground or water level, any of several very long-legged 3-toed shorebirds (genera Himantopus and Cladorhynchus ) that are related to the avocets, frequent inland ponds and marshes, and nest in small colonies,
II. transitive verb
Date: 1649
to raise on or as if on stilts