high

I. adjective Etymology: Middle English, from Old English hēah; akin to Old High German hōh high, Lithuanian kaukaras hill Date: before 12th century 1. a. having large extension upward ; taller than average, usual, or expected <

a high wall

> b. having a specified elevation ; tall <

six feet high

> — often used in combinations <

sky-high

> <

waist-high

> c. situated or passing above the normal level, surface, base of measurement, or elevation <

the high desert

> 2. a. (1) advanced toward the acme or culmination <

high summer

> (2) advanced toward the most active or culminating period <

on the Riviera during high season

> (3) constituting the late, most fully developed, or most creative stage or period <

high Gothic

> (4) advanced in complexity, development, or elaboration <

the higher primates including humans

> <

higher mathematics

> b. verging on lateness — usually used in the phrase high time c. long past ; remote <

high antiquity

> 3. elevated in pitch <

a high note

> 4. relatively far from the equator <

high latitude

> 5. rich in quality ; luxurious <

high living

> 6. slightly tainted <

high game

>; also malodorous <

smelled rather high

> 7. exalted in character ; noble <

high purposes

> 8. of greater degree, amount, cost, value, or content than average, usual, or expected <

high prices

> 9. of relatively great importance: as a. foremost in rank, dignity, or standing <

high officials

> b. serious, grave <

high crimes

> c. observed with the utmost solemnity <

high religious observances

> d. critical, climactic <

the high point of the novel

> e. intellectually or artistically of the first order <

high culture

> f. marked by sublime, heroic, or stirring events or subject matter <

high tragedy

> <

high adventure

> 10. forcible, strong <

high winds

> 11. stressing matters of doctrine and ceremony; specifically High Church 12. a. filled with or expressing great joy or excitement <

high spirits

> b. intoxicated; also excited or stupefied by or as if by a drug 13. articulated with some part of the tongue close to the palate <

a high vowel

> Synonyms: high, tall, lofty mean above the average in height. high implies marked extension upward and is applied chiefly to things which rise from a base or foundation or are placed at a conspicuous height above a lower level <

a high hill

> <

a high ceiling

>. tall applies to what grows or rises high by comparison with others of its kind and usually implies relative narrowness <

a tall thin man

>. lofty suggests great or imposing altitude <

lofty mountain peaks

>. II. adverb Date: before 12th century 1. at or to a high place, altitude, level, or degree <

climbed higher

> <

passions ran high

> 2. well, luxuriously — often used in the phrases high off the hog and high on the hog III. noun Date: 13th century 1. an elevated place or region: as a. hill, knoll b. the space overhead ; sky — usually used with on c. heaven — usually used with on 2. a region of high barometric pressure — called also anticyclone 3. a. a high point or level ; height <

sales reached a new high

> b. the transmission gear of a vehicle (as an automobile) giving the highest speed of travel 4. a. an excited, euphoric, or stupefied state produced by or as if by a drug b. a state of elation or high spirits