high

High is defined as something that is further up than normal, goes upward, is far above the ground, or is slang for being under the influence of drugs.

(adjective)

  1. An example of high is the altitude of an airplane in the sky.
  2. An example of high is the location of a toddler who has climbed a six foot ladder.
  3. An example of high is a person who is under the influence of a strong pain medication he took an hour ago.

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See high in Webster's New World College Dictionary

adjective

  1. of more than normal height; lofty; tall: not used of persons
  2. extending upward a (specified) distance
  3. situated far above the ground or some other level
  4. reaching to or done from a height: a high jump, a high dive
    1. above other persons or things in rank, position, strength, etc.; most important or powerful
    2. above other persons or things in quality, character, etc.; superior; exalted; excellent
  5. grave; very serious: high treason
  6. greatly advanced or developed; complex: usually in the comparative degree: higher mathematics, the higher vertebrates
  7. main; principal; chief: a high priest
  8. greater in size, amount, degree, power, intensity, etc. than usual: high prices, high voltage, a high profile
  9. advanced to its acme or fullness; fully reached: high noon
  10. expensive; costly
  11. luxurious and extravagant: high living
  12. haughty; overbearing
  13. designating or producing tones made by relatively fast vibrations; acute in pitch; sharp; shrill
  14. slightly tainted; having a strong smell: said of meat, esp. game
  15. extremely formal or rigid in matters of ceremony, doctrine, etc.
  16. excited; elated: high spirits
  17. far from the equator: a high latitude
  18. ☆ designating or of that gear ratio of a motor vehicle transmission which produces the highest speed and the lowest torque
  19. Slang
    1. drunk; intoxicated
    2. under the influence of a drug
  20. Phonet. articulated with the tongue held in a relatively elevated position in the mouth: said of certain vowels, as (ē) in feet

Origin: ME heigh, hei, hie < OE heah, akin to Ger hoch, Goth hauhs < IE *keuk- < base *keu-, to curve, arch > Sans kakúd-, peak, Russ kúča, heap

adverb

  1. in a high manner
  2. in, at, to, or toward a high degree, level, place, position, etc.

noun

  1. a high degree, level, place, position, etc.
  2. ☆ an area of high barometric pressure
  3. ☆ that gear of a motor vehicle, etc. producing the greatest speed and the lowest torque
  4. Slang a condition of euphoria induced as by drugs

See high in American Heritage Dictionary 4

adjective high·er, high·est
  1. a. Having a relatively great elevation; extending far upward: a high mountain; a high tower.
    b. Extending a specified distance upward: a cabinet ten feet high.
  2. Far or farther from a reference point: was too high in the offensive zone to take a shot.
  3. a. Being at or near the peak or culminating stage: the high tourist season; high summer.
    b. Advanced in development or complexity: high forms of animal life; higher mathematics.
    c. Far removed in time; remote: high antiquity.
  4. a. Slightly spoiled or tainted; gamy. Used of meat.
    b. Having a bad smell; malodorous.
  5. a. Having a pitch corresponding to a relatively large number of sound-wave cycles per second: the high tones of a flute.
    b. Raised in pitch; not soft or hushed: a high voice.
  6. Situated relatively far from the equator: a high latitude.
  7. a. Of great importance: set a high priority on funding the housing program.
    b. Eminent in rank or status: a high official.
    c. Serious; grave: high crimes and misdemeanors.
    d. Constituting a climax; crucial: The chase scene is the high point of the film.
    e. Characterized by lofty or stirring events or themes: high adventure; high drama.
  8. Lofty or exalted in quality or character: a person of high morals.
  9. a. Greater than usual or expected, as in quantity, magnitude, cost, or degree: “A high price has to be paid for the happy marriage with the four healthy children” (Doris Lessing).
    b. Favorable: He has a high opinion of himself.
  10. Of great force or violence: high winds.
  11. a. Indicating excitement or euphoria: high spirits.
    b. Slang Intoxicated by or as if by alcohol or a drug, such as cocaine or marijuana.
  12. Luxurious; extravagant: high living.
  13. Linguistics Of or relating to vowels produced with part of the tongue close to the palate, as in the vowel of tree.
  14. Of, relating to, or being the gear configuration or setting, as in an automotive transmission, that produces the greatest vehicular speed with respect to engine speed.
adverb higher, highest
  1. At, in, or to a lofty position, level, or degree: saw a plane high in the sky; prices that had gone too high.
  2. In an extravagant or luxurious way: made a fortune and lived high.
noun
  1. A lofty place or region.
  2. A high level or degree: Summer temperatures reached an all-time high.
  3. The high gear configuration of a transmission.
  4. A center of high atmospheric pressure; an anticyclone.
  5. Slang An intoxicated or euphoric condition induced by or as if by a drug.

Origin:

Origin: Middle English

Origin: , from Old English hēah

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Related Forms:

  • highˈly adverb

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