high
adjective/haɪ/
/haɪ/
(comparative higher, superlative highest)
Word Family
Idioms - high adjective noun adverb
- highly adverb
- height noun
- heighten verb
- measuring a long distance from the bottom to the top
- What's the highest mountain in the US?
- The house has a high wall all the way round it.
- shoes with high heels
- He has a round face with a high forehead.
- used to talk about the distance that something measures from the bottom to the top
- How high is Everest?
- It's only a low wall—about a metre high.
- The grass was waist-high.
- knee-high boots
- at a level that is a long way above the ground or above the level of the sea
- a high branch/shelf/window
- The rooms had high ceilings.
- streaks of high cloud
- They were flying at high altitude.
- the grasslands of the high prairies
Which Word? high / tallhigh / tall- High is used to talk about the measurement from the bottom to the top of something:
- The fence is over five metres high.
- He has climbed some of the world’s highest mountains.
- How high was the plane when the engine failed?
- Tall is used instead of high to talk about people:
- My brother’s much taller than me.
- She ordered cold beer in a tall glass.
- tall factory chimneys
- Tall pine trees line the roadways.
Extra Examples- The only windows in the hall were narrow and high.
- There was a light quite high up.
opposite low - greater or better than normal in quantity or quality, size or degree
- a high price/cost/speed/temperature
- a high rate of inflation
- high levels of pollution
- Demand is high at this time of year.
- high-quality goods
- a high risk of injury
- a high standard of craftsmanship
- A high proportion of our staff are female.
- Originally, an even higher percentage of land was wetlands.
- A high degree of accuracy is needed.
- The cost in terms of human life was high.
- higher than… Sales were significantly higher than in previous years.
- The tree blew over in the high winds.
- We had high hopes for the business (= we believed it would be successful).
Homophones higher | hirehigher hirecompare low/ˈhaɪə(r)//ˈhaɪər/- higher (high)
- Asparagus grows faster at higher temperatures.
- hire verb
- Can we hire a car here?
- hire noun
- Look! There are rowing boats for hire on the lake!
Extra Examples- There is an extremely high drop-out rate.
- Unemployment remained high for several years.
- Infection rates remain relatively high in the area.
- High council taxes have forced several local businesses to relocate.
- They charge very high prices for a pretty average service.
- Acids, by definition, have a higher concentration of hydrogen ions than plain water.
- It is critical for the company to maintain a high profile.
- containing a lot of a particular substance
- a high potassium content
- a high-fat diet
- high in something foods that are high in fat
- Oranges are high in vitamin C.
- [usually before noun] near the top in rank, status or importance
- She has held high office under three prime ministers.
- The case was referred to a higher court.
- the distinction between high art and popular art
- high on something Job security is high on his list of priorities.
- of great value
- to play for high stakes
- My highest card is ten.
- high against something At the moment, the euro is high against the dollar, which makes for a good exchange rate.
- The high dollar is still a major problem for importers.
- when a river or the tide is high, the water reaches a long way up the river bank, beach, etc.
- The river was very high and threatening to flood.
- [usually before noun] morally good
- a man of high ideals/principles
- [usually before noun] showing a lot of approval or respect for somebody
- She is held in very high regard by her colleagues.
- You seem to have a high opinion of yourself!
- at the upper end of the range of sounds that humans can hear; not deep or low
- She has a high voice.
- That note is definitely too high for me.
Extra Examples- Your voice sounds very high on the telephone.
- a fairly high pitch
- [only before noun] used to describe the middle or the most attractive part of a period of time
- high noon
- high summer
- (of meat, cheese, etc.) beginning to go bad and having a strong smell
- [not before noun] high (on something) (informal) behaving in an excited way because of the effects of alcohol or drugs
- He was high on drugs.
- (also close)(phonetics) (of a vowel) produced with part of the tongue in the highest possible position without limiting the flow of air
from bottom to top
far above ground
greater than normal
containing a lot
rank/status
valuable
river/sea
ideals/principles
approving
sound
of period of time
food
on alcohol/drugs
phonetics
Word OriginOld English hēah, of Germanic origin; related to Dutch hoog and German hoch.
Idioms
See high in the Oxford Advanced American DictionarySee high in the Oxford Learner's Dictionary of Academic Englishbe/get on your high horse
- (informal) to behave in a way that shows you think you are better than other people
friends, people, etc. in high places
- friends, people, etc. in positions of power and influence
- He has friends in high places.
have a high old time
- (old-fashioned, informal) to enjoy yourself very much
(come) hell or high water
- despite any difficulties
- I was determined to go, come hell or high water.
high and dry
- (of a boat, etc.) in a position out of the water
- Their yacht was left high and dry on a sandbank.
- in a difficult situation, without help or moneyMore Like This Rhyming pairs in idiomsRhyming pairs in idioms
high and mighty
- (informal) behaving as though you think you are more important than other people
high as a kite
- (informal) behaving in a very excited way, especially because of being strongly affected by alcohol or drugs
a high/low profile
- the amount of attention somebody/something has from the public
- This issue has had a high profile in recent months.
- I advised her to keep a low profile for the next few days (= not to attract attention).
- The story was given a low profile in today's papers.
in high dudgeon
- (old-fashioned, formal) in an angry or offended mood, and showing other people that you are angry
- He stomped out of the room in high dudgeon.
- She stormed out in high dudgeon.
it’s about/high time
- (informal) used to say that you think somebody should do something soon
- It's about time you cleaned your room!
of a high order | of the highest/first order
- of a high quality or degree; of the highest quality or greatest degree
- The job requires diplomatic skills of a high order.
- She was a snob of the first order.
smell, stink, etc. to high heaven (informal)
- to have a strong unpleasant smell
- to seem to be very dishonest or morally unacceptable
take, claim, seize, etc. the moral high ground
- to claim that your side of an argument is morally better than your opponents’ side; to argue in a way that makes your side seem morally better
- I was angry with his blatant attempt to take the moral high ground.
Check pronunciation:
high