high — English Dictionary

high
Word-form referenceshiehigh school
Pronunciations (2)
  • /haɪ/
  • [haɪ̯]

Adjective

  1. Physically elevated, extending above a base or average level: Very elevated; extending or being far above a base; tall; lofty.

    Examples

    The wall is high.

    The balloon rose high in the sky. The wall was high. a high mountain

    Upon the highest spray of every mounting pole, Those Quirristers are pearcht with many a speckled breast.

    More examples (2)

    The Chitistone River Valley offers a more direct route for travel from McCarthy to the White River and the Shushana gold placers than Skolai Creek, but it involves a high climb over the so-called “goat trail” to avoid the canyon above Chitistone[.]

    Like most human activities, ballooning has sponsored heroes and hucksters and a good deal in between. For every dedicated scientist patiently recording atmospheric pressure and wind speed while shivering at high altitudes, there is a carnival barker with a bevy of pretty girls willing to dangle from a basket or parachute down to earth.

  2. Physically elevated, extending above a base or average level: Relatively elevated; rising or raised above the average or normal level from which elevation is measured.

    Examples
    More examples (1)

    She was like a Beardsley Salome, he had said. And indeed she had the narrow eyes and the high cheekbone of that creature, and as nearly the sinuosity as is compatible with human symmetry. His wooing had been brief but incisive.

    A nightgown with a high neck and long sleeves may have the fullness set into a yoke.

    More examples (1)

    The concrete floors of B2B sheds were already being built to an exacting degree of flatness, calibrated using lasers, so that forklifts would not teeter while lifting pallets to the highest shelves.

  3. Physically elevated, extending above a base or average level: Of a ball, above the batter's shoulders.

    Examples

    the pitch (or: the ball) was high

  4. Physically elevated, extending above a base or average level: Pertaining to (or, especially of a language: spoken in) an area which is at a greater elevation, for example more mountainous, than other regions.

  5. Having a specified elevation or height; tall.

    Examples

    three feet high three Mount Everests high

    More examples (1)

    I told him about everything I could think of; and what I couldn't think of he did. He asked about six questions during my yarn, but every question had a point to it. At the end he bowed and thanked me once more. As a thanker he was main-truck high; I never see anybody so polite.

  6. Elevated in status, esteem, or prestige, or in importance or development; exalted in rank, station, or character.

    Examples

    She holds a high position in the company.

    The oldest of the elves' royal family still conversed in High Elvish.

    The Barnacles were a very high family, and a very large family. They were dispersed all over the public offices, and held all sorts of public places.

    More examples (1)

    Not a one of them was old enough to know what the high past of Liani separatism had really been like.

  7. Elevated in status, esteem, or prestige, or in importance or development; exalted in rank, station, or character. Most exalted; foremost.

    Examples

    the high priest, the high officials of the court, the high altar

  8. Elevated in status, esteem, or prestige, or in importance or development; exalted in rank, station, or character. Of great importance and consequence: grave (if negative) or solemn (if positive).

    Examples

    high crimes, the high festival of the sun

  9. Elevated in status, esteem, or prestige, or in importance or development; exalted in rank, station, or character. Consummate; advanced (e.g. in development) to the utmost extent or culmination, or possessing a quality in its supreme degree, at its zenith.

    Examples
    More examples (1)

    high (i.e. intense) heat; high (i.e. full or quite) noon; high (i.e. rich or spicy) seasoning; high (i.e. complete) pleasure; high (i.e. deep or vivid) colour; high (i.e. extensive, thorough) scholarship; high tide; high [tourism] season; the High Middle Ages

    High time it is this war now ended were.

    1709-1710, Thomas Baker, Reflections on Learning High sauces and rich spices are fetch'd from the Indies.

  10. Elevated in status, esteem, or prestige, or in importance or development; exalted in rank, station, or character. Advanced in complexity (and hence potentially abstract and/or difficult to comprehend).

    Examples

    to hear and answer such high things

    Plain living and high thinking are no more.

  11. Extreme, excessive; now specifically very traditionalist and conservative.

    Usage
    • of an opinion or practice
    Examples

    high church High Tory

    More examples (4)

    Furder, what wil you answeare for your keping a daye, cessation &c to St. Michael & al Angells? how wil you excuse your self of most high idolatrie, advancing your self in thinges you neuer sawe, rashlie puffed vp of your fleshlie minde, and not holding the heade, depriuing others of their Crowne?

    The letter of a "Pioneer" was sent to the Chronicle office by a very respectable man, of a high conservative family, but whose interests have been injuriously affected by the constant fluctuations in the commercial policy of England.

    His family was ardently royalist, and might be compared to a high Tory family on this side the water; with some change of conditions, their prejudices and disposition of the mind were the same.

    My father was the youngest son of a High-Church and high Tory family, the politically leftwing and religiously Nonconformist rebel; and antiimperialist who nearly lost his position in the City by refusing to sign his firm's pro–Boer War petition.

  12. Elevated in mood; marked by great merriment, excitement, etc.

    Examples

    in high spirits

    1970, Grateful Dead, High Time, on the album Workingman's Dead I was having a high time, living the good life.

  13. Keen, enthused.

    Examples

    "Conversely, just because I am not high on positivity, it does not mean I am necessarily high on negativity."

    I'm not that high about the relationship.

  14. Intoxicated; under the influence of a mood-altering drug, formerly usually alcohol, but now (from the mid-20th century) usually not alcohol but rather marijuana, cocaine, heroin, etc.

    Usage
    • Informal
    Examples

    "Three extremely high people showing up at the animal shelter like WE FOUND A DOG would be really funny, but..."

    Ooh! Remember when you got high at McDonald's and told Gangle to kill herself?

  15. Luxurious; rich.

    Usage
    • of a lifestyle
    Examples

    high living, the high life

    More examples (1)

    I was living the high lifestyle in famous sex clubs, relaxing on luxurious sofas, in the saunas and whirlpools, enjoying moments of excitement with my male and female companions while sipping champagne from crystal glasses.

  16. Lofty, often to the point of arrogant, haughty, boastful, proud.

    Examples

    a high tone

    An high looke, and a proud heart, […] is sinne.

    More examples (1)

    His forces, after all the high discourses, amounted really but to eighteen hundred foot.

  17. With tall waves.

    Usage
    • of a body of water
    Examples

    The sea is as high as ever. I shouldn't think any boat could put out today.

  18. Remote (to the north or south) from the equator; situated at (or constituting) a latitude which is expressed by a large number.

    Examples

    high latitude, fish species in high arctic and antarctic areas

    More examples (1)

    But other euphausiids, Euphausia crystallorophias, are found in the pack ice region of the high Antarctic as food of Blue and Minke Whales (Marr, 1956). E. vallentini is very important in the lower Antarctic region, around […]

    We predict that L. arctica will coincide with the whole reindeer-caribou distribution, probably excepted Svalbard, South Georgia and other high-polar areas.

    More examples (3)

    […] petrels, which breed primarily in the high Antarctic, the Rauer Islands are fairly central in their breeding distribution. This study documents the breeding biology of these four species of fulmarine petrels on Hop Island, Rauer Islands during […]

    Except for some lithodid crabs that have recently been found in the Antarctic Bellingshausen Sea (Klages et al., 1995; Arana and Retamal, 2000), reptants are not known from high polar areas, where water temperature at the seafloor drops permanently below about 0°C.

    This study also analyzed the sources of variations over an environmental gradient extending from low (subtropical) to high (sub-Antarctic) latitudes.

  19. Large, great (in amount or quantity, value, force, energy, etc).

    Examples

    The prices are high.

    My bank charges me a high interest rate.

    I was running a high temperature and had high cholesterol.

    More examples (6)

    high voltage high prices high winds a high number

    Can heavenly minds such high resentment show?

    You'll never say hello to you Until you get it on the red line overload You'll never know what you can do Until you get it up as high as you can go

    Ignition voltage needs to be high enough to overcome the high resistance created by the air gap.

    The single-imaging optic of the mammalian eye offers some distinct visual advantages. Such lenses can take in photons from a wide range of angles, increasing light sensitivity. They also have high spatial resolution, resolving incoming images in minute detail.

    Studies also show that absentee ballots cast by voters who are younger or from racial and ethnic minority groups are rejected at higher rates than other absentee ballots.

  20. Large, great (in amount or quantity, value, force, energy, etc). Having a large or comparatively larger concentration of (a substance, which is often but not always linked by "in" when predicative).

    Examples

    Carrots are high in vitamin A. made from a high-copper alloy

    Anyone can determine for himself whether certain wire is high carbon or not. Heat a piece of the wire red hot and while red plunge into water till cold.

  21. Acute or shrill in pitch, due to being of greater frequency, i.e. produced by more rapid vibrations (wave oscillations).

    Examples

    She has a high voice.

    The note was too high for her to sing.

  22. Made with some part of the tongue positioned high in the mouth, relatively close to the palate.

  23. Greater in value than other cards, denominations, suits, etc. Having the highest rank in a straight, flush or straight flush.

    Examples

    I have KT742 of the same suit. In other words, a K-high flush.

    9-high straight = 98765 unsuited

    More examples (1)

    Royal Flush = AKQJT suited = A-high straight flush

  24. Greater in value than other cards, denominations, suits, etc. Winning; able to take a trick, win a round, etc.

    Usage
    • of a card or hand
    Examples

    North's hand was high. East was in trouble.

    Cutler pushed forward the two necessary white chips. No one's hand was high, and Loomis made a slight winning.

  25. Strong-scented; slightly tainted/spoiled; beginning to decompose.

    Usage
    • of meat
    Examples

    Epicures do not cook game before it is high.

    The tailor liked his meat high.

    More examples (1)

    What he did know was this: something about the situation smelled wrong. Something about it smelled as high as dead fish that have spent three days in the hot sun.

  26. Near, in its direction of travel, to the (direction of the) wind.

    Usage
    • of a sailing ship
    Examples
    More examples (1)

    NO NEARER! (arrive! Fr.) the command given by the pilot of quarter-master, to the helmsman, to steer the ship no higher to the direction of the wind than the sails will operate to advance the ship in her course.

  27. Positioned up the field, towards the opposing team's goal.

    Examples

    Our defensive line is too high.

Adverb

  1. In or to an elevated position.

    Examples

    How high above land did you fly?

    The desks were piled high with magazines.

  2. In or at a great value.

    Examples

    Costs have grown higher this year again.

  3. At a pitch of great frequency.

    Examples

    I certainly can't sing that high.

Noun

  1. A high point or position, literally (as, an elevated place; a superior region; a height; the sky; heaven) or figuratively (as, a point of success or achievement; a time when things are at their best, greatest, most numerous, maximum, etc).

    Usage
    • Countable
    Examples

    It was one of the highs of his career.

    Inflation reached a ten-year high.

    More examples (1)

    South Korea has reached a new high in a kind of air pollution measured in fine dust.

  2. A high point or position, literally (as, an elevated place; a superior region; a height; the sky; heaven) or figuratively (as, a point of success or achievement; a time when things are at their best, greatest, most numerous, maximum, etc). The maximum atmospheric temperature recorded at a particular location, especially during one 24-hour period.

    Usage
    • Countable
    • Uncountable
    Examples

    Today's high was 32 °C.

  3. A period of euphoria, from excitement or from an intake of drugs.

    Usage
    • Countable
    Examples

    Falling from cloud nine / Crashing from the high / I'm letting go tonight / Yeah, I'm falling from cloud nine

    More examples (1)

    They will have to reflect on a seventh successive defeat in a European final while Chelsea try to make sense of an eccentric season rife with controversy and bad feeling but once again one finishing on an exhilarating high.

    That pill gave me a high for a few hours, before I had a comedown.

  4. A drug that gives such a high.

    Usage
    • Countable
    Examples
    More examples (1)

    No sooner has a [synthetic] drug been blacklisted than chemists adjust their recipe and start churning out a subtly different one. These “legal highs” are sold for the few months it takes the authorities to identify and ban them, and then the cycle begins again.

  5. A large area of elevated atmospheric pressure; an anticyclone.

    Usage
    • Countable
    • Informal
    Examples

    A large high is centred on the Azores.

  6. The highest card dealt or drawn.

    Usage
    • Countable

Verb

  1. To rise.

    Usage
    • Obsolete
    Examples

    The sun higheth.

Adjective

  1. greater than normal in quantity or amount

    Antonyms
    Examples

    a high temperature

    a high price

    More examples (5)

    the high point of his career

    high risks

    has high hopes

    the river is high

    he has a high opinion of himself

  2. (literal meaning) being at or having a relatively great or specific elevation or upward extension (sometimes used in combinations like ‘knee-high’)

    Antonyms
    Examples

    a high mountain

    high ceilings

    More examples (4)

    high buildings

    a high forehead

    a high incline

    a foot high

  3. standing above others in quality or position

    Synonyms
    Examples

    people in high places

    the high priest

    More examples (1)

    eminent members of the community

  4. used of sounds and voices; high in pitch or frequency

    Synonyms
    Antonyms
  5. happy and excited and energetic

  6. (used of the smell of meat) smelling spoiled or tainted

    Synonyms
  7. slightly and pleasantly intoxicated from alcohol or a drug (especially marijuana)

    Synonyms

Noun

  1. a lofty level or position or degree

    Antonyms
    Broader terms
    Examples

    summer temperatures reached an all-time high

  2. an air mass of higher than normal pressure

    Broader terms
    Examples

    the east coast benefits from a Bermuda high

  3. a state of sustained elation

    Antonyms
    Broader terms
    Examples

    I'm on a permanent high these days

  4. a state of altered consciousness induced by alcohol or narcotics

    Broader terms
    Examples

    they took drugs to get a high on

  5. a high place

    Synonyms
    Examples

    they stood on high and observed the countryside

    he doesn't like heights

  6. a public secondary school usually including grades 9 through 12

    Examples

    he goes to the neighborhood highschool

  7. a forward gear with a gear ratio that gives the greatest vehicle velocity for a given engine speed

    Synonyms
    Broader terms

Adverb

  1. at a great altitude

    Synonyms
    Examples

    he climbed high on the ladder

  2. in or to a high position, amount, or degree

    Examples

    prices have gone up far too high

  3. in a rich manner

    Examples

    he lives high

  4. far up toward the source

    Examples

    he lives high up the river

Word forms
higherhighestheighhihighshighshighinghighedhighed

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