Word.ws English Dictionary

high

/haɪ/

high adjective: very elevated; extending or being far above a base; tall; lofty. Also the ellipsis of high school.

Adjective

high (comparative higher, superlative highest)

  1. Very elevated; extending or being far above a base; tall; lofty.
    • 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.1612, Michael Drayton, Poly-Olbion, song 13 p. 214
  2. Relatively elevated; rising or raised above the average or normal level from which elevation is measured.
    • 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.1921, Ben Travers, chapter 1, in A Cuckoo in the Nest, Garden City, N.Y.: Doubleday, Page & Company, published 1925, →OCLC
    • A nightgown with a high neck and long sleeves may have the fullness set into a yoke.1919, Martha Van Rensselaer, Flora Rose, Helen Canon, A Manual of Home-Making, page 376
  3. Of a ball, above the batter's shoulders.
    • the pitch (or: the ball) was high
  4. 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.
    • three feet high three Mount Everests high
    • 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.1913, Joseph C[rosby] Lincoln, chapter IV, in Mr. Pratt’s Patients, New York, N.Y.; London: D[aniel] Appleton and Company, →OCLC
  6. Elevated in status, esteem, or prestige, or in importance or development; exalted in rank, station, or character.
    • 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.1855 December – 1857 June, Charles Dickens, Little Dorrit, London: Bradbury and Evans, […], published 1857, →OCLC
    1. Most exalted; foremost.
      • the high priest, the high officials of the court, the high altar
    2. Of great importance and consequence: grave (if negative) or solemn (if positive).
      • high crimes, the high festival of the sun
    3. Consummate; advanced (e.g. in development) to the utmost extent or culmination, or possessing a quality in its supreme degree, at its zenith.
      • 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.1595, Edmunde Spenser [i.e., Edmund Spenser], “(please specify the sonnet number or title)”, in Amoretti and Epithalamion. […], London: […] [Peter Short] for William Ponsonby, →OCLC
    4. Advanced in complexity (and hence potentially abstract and/or difficult to comprehend).
      • to hear and answer such high things1599 (first performance), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Iulius Cæsar”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward]...
      • Plain living and high thinking are no more.1802, William Wordsworth, England 1802
  7. (obsolete outside set phrases) Extreme, excessive; now specifically very traditionalist and conservative.
    • high church High Tory
    • 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?1591, Henry Barrow, A Plaine Refutation of M. G. Giffardes reprochful booke […], page 33
  8. Elevated in mood; marked by great merriment, excitement, etc.
    • in high spirits
    • I was having a high time, living the good life.1970, Grateful Dead, High Time, on the album Workingman's Dead
  9. (with on or about) Keen, enthused.
    • "Conversely, just because I am not high on positivity, it does not mean I am necessarily high on negativity."2016, David Chan, Enabling Positive Attitudes and Experiences in Singapore, page 140
    • I'm not that high about the relationship.2010, Lena, quoted by S. Rosenbloom, The Multiracial Urban High School: Fearing Peers and Trusting Friends, chapter four
  10. (informal) 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.
    • "Three extremely high people showing up at the animal shelter like WE FOUND A DOG would be really funny, but..."2018, Jeph Jacques, Questionable Content (webcomic), 3879: Pointy Boi
    • Ooh! Remember when you got high at McDonald's and told Gangle to kill herself?2025 June 20, Gooseworx, “Untitled” (16:00 from the start), in The Amazing Digital Circus, episode 5, spoken by Jax (Michael Kovach)
    Synonyms:
    stoned
  11. Luxurious; rich.
    • high living, the high life
    • 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.2010, Rose Maria McCarthy Anding., High Heels, Honey Lips, & White Powder
  12. Lofty, often to the point of arrogant, haughty, boastful, proud.
    • a high tone
    • An high looke, and a proud heart, […] is sinne.1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Proverbs 21:4
Show 10 more meaningsShow fewer meanings
  1. With tall waves.
    • The sea is as high as ever. I shouldn't think any boat could put out today.1939, Agatha Christie, chapter 11, in And Then There Were None
  2. Remote (to the north or south) from the equator; situated at (or constituting) a latitude which is expressed by a large number.
    • high latitude, fish species in high arctic and antarctic areas
    • 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 […]1966, Symposium on Antarctic Oceanography: Papers, page 242
  3. Large, great (in amount or quantity, value, force, energy, etc).
    • My bank charges me a high interest rate.
    • I was running a high temperature and had high cholesterol.
    1. Having a large or comparatively larger concentration of (a substance, which is often but not always linked by "in" when predicative).
      • 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.1907, The American Exporter, volume 60, page 101
  4. (acoustics) Acute or shrill in pitch, due to being of greater frequency, i.e. produced by more rapid vibrations (wave oscillations).
    • The note was too high for her to sing.
  5. Made with some part of the tongue positioned high in the mouth, relatively close to the palate.
  6. Having the highest rank in a straight, flush or straight flush.
    • I have KT742 of the same suit. In other words, a K-high flush.
    • 9-high straight = 98765 unsuited
  7. Winning; able to take a trick, win a round, etc.
    • 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.1894, Harper's Magazine, volume 88, page 910
  8. (especially venison) Strong-scented; slightly tainted/spoiled; beginning to decompose.
    • Epicures do not cook game before it is high.
    • The tailor liked his meat high.
  9. Near, in its direction of travel, to the (direction of the) wind.
    • 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.1784, William Falconer, An Universal Dictionary of the Marine: Or, A Copious Explanation
  10. (sports such as soccer) Positioned up the field, towards the opposing team's goal.
    • Our defensive line is too high.

Adverb

high (comparative higher, superlative highest)

  1. In or to an elevated position.
    • How high above land did you fly?
    • The desks were piled high with magazines.
  2. In or at a great value.
    • Costs have grown higher this year again.
  3. At a pitch of great frequency.
    • I certainly can't sing that high.

Noun

high (countable and uncountable, plural highs)

  1. (countable) 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).
    • It was one of the highs of his career.
    • Inflation reached a ten-year high.
    1. The maximum atmospheric temperature recorded at a particular location, especially during one 24-hour period.
      • Today's high was 32 °C.
  2. (countable) A period of euphoria, from excitement or from an intake of drugs.
    • Falling from cloud nine / Crashing from the high / I'm letting go tonight / Yeah, I'm falling from cloud nine2012, Katy Perry, Max Martin, Bonnie McKee, Dr. Luke, Cirkut, “Wide Awake”, in Teenage Dream: The Complete Confection, performed by Katy Perry
    • 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.2013 May 15, Daniel Taylor, The Guardian
  3. (countable) A drug that gives such a high.
    • 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.2013 August 10, “A new prescription”, in The Economist, volume 408, number 8848
  4. (countable, informal) A large area of elevated atmospheric pressure; an anticyclone.
    • A large high is centred on the Azores.
  5. (countable) The highest card dealt or drawn.

Verb

high (third-person singular simple present highs, present participle highing, simple past and past participle highed)

  1. (obsolete) To rise.
    • The sun higheth.

Proper noun capitalized: High

High (plural Highs)

  1. A surname.

Also used as

high is also the ellipsis of high school.

high is also the alternative form of hie.

high meaning in Hindi, Tamil, Marathi and Urdu

high in Hindi

elevated; tall
ऊँचा ū̃cā, लंबा lambā, लम्बा lambā

high in Tamil

உயர்ந்தது, உயர்ந்த, உயரமான

high in Marathi

उंच, उच्च

high in Urdu

elevated; tall
اونچا ū̃cā, لمبا lambā
More languagesFewer languages
high in Bengali
উচ্চ ucco
high in Telugu
ఎత్తైన ettaina, పొడుగు poḍugu
high in Malayalam
ഉയർന്ന, ഉയർന്നത്
high in Kannada
ಎತ್ತರದ
high in Punjabi
ਉੱਚਾ, ਉੱਚੀ, ਉੱਚੇ
high in Gujarati
ઊંચો, ઉચ્ચ, ઊંચું
high in Odia
ଉଚ୍ଚ ucca
high in Sanskrit
उच्च ucca
high in Assamese
ওখ ükho
high in Nepali
उच्च
high in Pashto
لوړ lwaṛ, اوچت učat, جګ jëg
high in Arabic
عَالٍ ʕālin, اَلْعَالِي al-ʕālī, طَوِيل ṭawīl, عالي ʕāli
high in Malay
tinggi
high in Indonesian
tinggi
high in Persian
بالا bâlâ, بلند boland
high in Thai
สูง sǔung, เมา mao, ที่สูง tîi-sǔung
high in Vietnamese
cao cấp, cao, phê
high in Myanmar
စွင့် cwang., မြင့် mrang.

Examples of high in a sentence

  • high voltage high prices high winds a high number
  • Royal Flush = AKQJT suited = A-high straight flush
  • That pill gave me a high for a few hours, before I had a comedown.
  • 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.2019 November 21, Samanth Subramanian, “How our home delivery habit reshaped the world”, in The Guardian, archived from the original on 24...
  • Not a one of them was old enough to know what the high past of Liani separatism had really been like.2007, Sheila Finch, Shaper's Legacy, →ISBN, page 122:
  • 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.1875, Henry Reeve, “Introductory Notice”, in Alexis de Tocqueville, translated by Henry Reeve, Democracy in America, page xvi:

All 40 example sentences with high

Synonyms of high

Antonyms

All synonyms and antonyms of high

Forms of high

Adjective
comparativehigher
superlativehighest
alternative form (dialectal)heigh
alternative form (informal)hi
Adverb
comparativehigher
superlativehighest
Noun
pluralhighs
Verb
third-person singular presenthighs
present participlehighing
past participlehighed
pasthighed
Proper noun
pluralHighs

Plural of high: highs

Origin of high

From Middle English high, heigh, heih, from Old English hēah (“high, tall, lofty, high-class, exalted, sublime, illustrious, important, proud, haughty, deep, right”), from Proto-West Germanic *hauh (“high”), from Proto-Germanic *hauhaz (“high”), from Proto-Indo-European *kewk- (“to bend; crooked”). Cognates Cognate with Scots heich (“high”), Yola heegh, heigh, heighe, hia, hie (“high”), North Frisian hoog, huuch (“high”), Saterland Frisian hooch, hoog (“high”), West Frisian heech (“high”), Alemannic German hooch (“high”), Central Franconian huh (“high”), Cimbrian hoach, hòach (“high”), Dutch hoog (“high”), German hoch (“high”), German Low German hooch (“high”), Limburgish hoeg (“high”), Luxembourgish héich (“high”), Mòcheno heach (“high”), Vilamovian huch (“high”), Yiddish הויך (hoykh, “high”), Danish høj (“high”), Faroese háur, høgur (“high”), Gutnish haugar (“high”), Icelandic hár (“high”), Norwegian Bokmål høg, høy (“high”), Norwegian Nynorsk høg, håg, hå (“high”), Swedish hög (“high”), Gothic 𐌷𐌰𐌿𐌷𐍃 (hauhs, “high”), Vandalic *oas (“high”), Old French haut (“high”) (from Old High German hoh (“high”)); also with Ancient Greek Καύκᾰσος (Kaúkăsos, “Caucasus”), Latvian koks...

From Middle English hegen, heghen, heien, a conflation of Old English ġehēgan (“to perform, conduct”) (from Proto-West Germanic *hauwjan) and hēan (“to raise up, exalt”) (from *hauhijan), also influenced by heigh (“high”).

See hie.

Words formed from high

Phrases with high

172 more phrasesFewer phrases

Words that rhyme with high

48 more rhymesFewer rhymes

Questions about high

What does high mean?
High means very elevated; extending or being far above a base; tall; lofty.
What is high in Hindi?
High in Hindi is ऊँचा (ū̃cā), लंबा (lambā), लम्बा (lambā). See High meaning in Hindi.
How do you use high in a sentence?
high voltage high prices high winds a high number
What part of speech is high?
High can be an adjective, an adverb, a noun or a verb.
How do you pronounce high?
High is pronounced /haɪ/.

Words near high in the dictionary

  1. higgsinos
  2. higgsless
  3. Higgslike
  4. higgson
  5. higgsons
  6. high
  7. High Abbotside
  8. high adventure
  9. High Alemannic
  10. high altar
  11. high altars

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: high (page history and authors); High (page history and authors); high (Tamil, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); high (Marathi, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); high (Malayalam, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); high (Kannada, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); high (Punjabi, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); high (Gujarati, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); high (Nepali, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: en-us-high.ogg, En-uk-high.ogg.

Cite this entry: “high.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/high. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.