Esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) is one of the most common lethal tumors in the world, and the development of new therapeutic targets is needed. Recent studies have shown that aerobic glycolysis, also known as the Warburg effect, mediated the anti-apoptotic effects in cancer cells. Lactate dehydrogenase A (LDHA) which executed the final step of aerobic lactate production has been reported to be involved in the tumor progression. However, the function of LDHA in ESCC has not been investigated. In this study, it was found that LDHA was up-regulated in ESCC clinical samples. Knockdown of the expression of LDHA inhibited cell growth and cell migration in vitro as well as tumorigenesis in vivo. With regard to the molecular mechanism, silencing the expression of LDHA was related to decreased AKT activation and cyclin D1 expression and increased cleavage of PARP and caspase 8. Taken together, our findings suggest that LDHA plays an important role in the progression of ESCC by modulating cell growth, and LDHA might be a potential therapeutic target in ESCC.