high

[hahy] /haɪ/
adjective, higher, highest.
1.
having a great or considerable extent or reach upward or vertically; lofty; tall:
a high wall.
2.
having a specified extent upward:
The apple tree is now 20 feet high.
3.
situated above the ground or some base; elevated:
a high platform; a high ledge.
4.
exceeding the common degree or measure; strong; intense:
high speed; high color.
5.
expensive; costly; dear:
The price of food these days is much too high.
6.
exalted in rank, station, eminence, etc.; of exalted character or quality:
a high official; high society.
7.
Music.
  1. acute in pitch.
  2. a little sharp, or above the desired pitch.
8.
produced by relatively rapid vibrations; shrill:
the high sounds of crickets.
9.
extending to or from an elevation:
a high dive.
10.
great in quantity, as number, degree, or force:
a high temperature; high cholesterol.
11.
Religion.
  1. chief; principal; main:
    the high altar of a church.
  2. High Church.
12.
of great consequence; important; grave; serious; the high consequences of such a deed; high treason.
13.
haughty; arrogant:
He took a high tone with his subordinates.
14.
advanced to the utmost extent or to the culmination:
high tide.
15.
elevated; merry or hilarious:
high spirits; a high old time.
16.
rich; extravagant; luxurious:
They have indulged in high living for years.
17.
Informal. intoxicated with alcohol or narcotics:
He was so high he couldn't stand up.
18.
remote:
high latitude; high antiquity.
19.
extreme in opinion or doctrine, especially religious or political:
a high Tory.
20.
designating or pertaining to highland or inland regions.
21.
having considerable energy or potential power.
22.
Automotive. of, pertaining to, or operating at the gear transmission ratio at which the speed of the engine crankshaft and of the drive shaft most closely correspond:
high gear.
23.
Phonetics. (of a vowel) articulated with the upper surface of the tongue relatively close to some portion of the palate, as the vowels of eat and it, which are high front, and those of boot and put, which are high back.
Compare close (def 53), low1 (def 30).
24.
(of meat, especially game) tending toward a desirable or undesirable amount of decomposition; slightly tainted:
He likes his venison high.
25.
Metallurgy. containing a relatively large amount of a specified constituent (usually used in combination):
high-carbon steel.
26.
Baseball. (of a pitched ball) crossing the plate at a level above the batter's shoulders:
The pitch was high and outside.
27.
Cards.
  1. having greater value than other denominations or suits.
  2. able to take a trick; being a winning card.
  3. being or having a winning combination:
    Whose hand is high?
28.
Nautical. noting a wind of force 10 on the Beaufort scale, equal to a whole gale.
adverb, higher, highest.
29.
at or to a high point, place, or level.
30.
in or to a high rank or estimate:
He aims high in his political ambitions.
31.
at or to a high amount or price.
32.
in or to a high degree.
33.
luxuriously; richly; extravagantly:
They have always lived high.
34.
Nautical. as close to the wind as is possible while making headway with sails full.
noun
35.
Automotive. high gear:
He shifted into high when the road became level.
36.
Informal. high school.
37.
Meteorology. a pressure system characterized by relatively high pressure at its center.
Compare anticyclone, low1 (def 46).
38.
a high or the highest point, place, or level; peak:
a record high for unemployment.
39.
Slang.
  1. a euphoric state induced by alcohol, drugs, etc.
  2. a period of sustained excitement, exhilaration, or the like:
    After winning the lottery he was on a high for weeks.
40.
Cards. the ace or highest trump out, especially in games of the all fours family.
Idioms
41.
fly high, to be full of hope or elation:
His stories began to sell, and he was flying high.
42.
high and dry,
  1. (of a ship) grounded so as to be entirely above water at low tide.
  2. in a deprived or distressing situation; deserted; stranded:
    We missed the last bus and were left high and dry.
43.
high and low, in every possible place; everywhere:
The missing jewelry was never found, though we searched high and low for it.
44.
high on, Informal. enthusiastic or optimistic about; having a favorable attitude toward or opinion of.
45.
on high,
  1. at or to a height; above.
  2. in heaven.
  3. having a high position, as one who makes important decisions:
    the powers on high.
Origin
before 900; Middle English heigh, variant of hegh, hey, heh, Old English hēah, hēh; cognate with Dutch hoog, Old High German hoh (German hoch), Old Norse hār, Swedish hög, Gothic hauhs, Lithuanian kaũkas swelling, kaukarà hill
Related forms
overhigh, adjective
overhighly, adverb
Can be confused
hi, hie, high (see synonym study at the current entry)
higher, hire (see synonym study at hire)
Synonyms
1. High, lofty, tall, towering refer to something that has considerable height. High is a general term, and denotes either extension upward or position at a considerable height: six feet high; a high shelf. Lofty denotes imposing or even inspiring height: lofty crags. Tall is applied either to something that is high in proportion to its breadth, or to anything higher than the average of its kind: a tall tree, building. Towering is applied to something that rises to a great or conspicuous height as compared with something else: a towering mountain. 6. elevated, eminent, prominent, distinguished. 12. capital.
Antonyms
1. low.
British Dictionary definitions for high and low

high

/haɪ/
adjective
1.
being a relatively great distance from top to bottom; tall: a high building
2.
situated at or extending to a relatively great distance above the ground or above sea level: a high plateau
3.
  1. (postpositive) being a specified distance from top to bottom: three feet high
  2. (in combination): a seven-foot-high wall
4.
extending from an elevation: a high dive
5.
(in combination) coming up to a specified level: knee-high
6.
being at its peak or point of culmination: high noon
7.
of greater than average height: a high collar
8.
greater than normal in degree, intensity, or amount: high prices, a high temperature, a high wind
9.
of large or relatively large numerical value: high frequency, high voltage, high mileage
10.
(of sound) acute in pitch; having a high frequency
11.
(of latitudes) situated relatively far north or south from the equator
12.
(of meat) slightly decomposed or tainted, regarded as enhancing the flavour of game
13.
of great eminence; very important: the high priestess
14.
exalted in style or character; elevated: high drama
15.
expressing or feeling contempt or arrogance: high words
16.
elated; cheerful: high spirits
17.
(predicative) (informal) overexcited: by the end of term the children are really high
18.
(informal) being in a state of altered consciousness, characterized esp by euphoria and often induced by the use of alcohol, narcotics, etc
19.
luxurious or extravagant: high life
20.
advanced in complexity or development: high finance
21.
(of a gear) providing a relatively great forward speed for a given engine speed Compare low1 (sense 21)
22.
(phonetics) of, relating to, or denoting a vowel whose articulation is produced by raising the back of the tongue towards the soft palate or the blade towards the hard palate, such as for the ee in English see or oo in English moon Compare low1 (sense 20)
23.
(capital when part of name) formal and elaborate in style: High Mass
24.
(usually capital) of or relating to the High Church
25.
remote, esp in time
26.
(cards)
  1. having a relatively great value in a suit
  2. able to win a trick
27.
high and dry, stranded; helpless; destitute
28.
high and low, in all places; everywhere
29.
(informal) high and mighty, arrogant
30.
(informal) high as a kite
  1. very drunk
  2. overexcited
  3. euphoric from drugs
31.
high opinion, a favourable opinion
adverb
32.
at or to a height: he jumped high
33.
in a high manner
34.
(nautical) close to the wind with sails full
noun
35.
a high place or level
36.
(informal) a state of altered consciousness, often induced by alcohol, narcotics, etc
37.
another word for anticyclone
38.
short for high school
39.
(capital) (esp in Oxford) the High Street
40.
(electronics) the voltage level in a logic circuit corresponding to logical one Compare low1 (sense 30)
41.
on high
  1. at a height
  2. in heaven
Word Origin
Old English hēah; related to Old Norse hār, Gothic hauhs, Old High German hōh high, Lithuanian kaũkas bump, Russian kúchča heap, Sanskrit kuča bosom
Word Origin and History for high and low

high

adj.

Old English heh (Anglian), heah (West Saxon) "of great height, lofty, tall, exalted, high-class," from Proto-Germanic *haukhaz (cf. Old Saxon hoh, Old Norse har, Danish høi, Swedish hög, Old Frisian hach, Dutch hoog, Old High German hoh, German hoch, Gothic hauhs "high;" also German Hügel "hill," Old Norse haugr "mound"), perhaps related to Lithuanian kaukara "hill." Spelling with -gh represents a final guttural sound in the original word, lost since 14c.

Of sound pitch, late 14c. Of roads, "most frequented or important," c.1200. Meaning "euphoric or exhilarated from alcohol" is first attested 1620s, of drugs, 1932. Sense of "proud, haughty, arrogant, supercilious" (c.1200) is reflected in high hand (late 14c.) and high horse. High seas first attested late 14c., with sense (also found in the Latin cognate) of "deep" as well as "tall" (cf. Old English heahflod "deep water," also Old Persian baršan "height, depth"). Of an evil or a punishment, "grave, serious, severe" (e.g. high treason), c.1200 (Old English had heahsynn "deadly sin, crime").

High pressure (adj.) is from 1824, of engines, 1891, of weather systems, 1933, of sales pitches. A child's high chair is from 1848. High school "school for advanced studies" attested from late 15c. in Scotland; by 1824 in U.S. High time "fully time, the fullness of time," is from late 14c. High noon is from early 14c.; the sense is "full, total, complete." High and mighty is c.1200 (heh i mahhte). High finance (1905) is that concerned with large sums. High and dry of beached things (especially ships) is from 1783. High-water mark is what is left by a flood or highest tide (1550s); figurative use by 1814.

n.

early 14c., "high point, top," from high (adj.). As "area of high barometric pressure," from 1878. As "highest recorded temperature" from 1926. Meaning "state of euphoria" is from 1953.

"thought, understanding," obsolete from 13c. in English and also lost in Modern German, but once an important Germanic word, Old English hyge, cognate with Old Saxon hugi, Old High German hugi, Old Norse hygr, Swedish hög, Danish hu.

Slang definitions & phrases for high and low

high

adjective
  1. Drunk, esp slightly so: high, slightly alcoholic, above the earth (1627+)
  2. Intoxicated by narcotics, esp in an easy and lighthearted condition induced by drugs; geezed: An actor has less license to get high during working hours than does a musician/ the smoker uses them in big puffs getting high (1932+ Narcotics)
  3. : The congregation was all high on gospel enthusiasm (1960s+)
noun
  1. : He took a few tokes and got a pretty good high (1960s+ Narcotics)
  2. A non-intoxicated feeling of exhilaration or euphoria; lift: Weddings are a high (1960s+)
Related Terms

mile-high club, shit in high cotton


Idioms and Phrases with high and low

high and low

Everywhere, as in We searched high and low but couldn't find the ring, or He hunted high and low for a parking space.

high

also see: