high
/haɪ/adjective, adverb, noun
high is spelled H-I-G-H: 4 letters and one syllable. It appears 562 times per million words in written English, the 173rd most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). People search “hi vs high” about 90 times a month (Google, United States). As an adjective, high means “Very elevated; extending or being far above a base; tall; lofty” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in high?
| Letters | 4: H-I-G-H |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 1 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 562 times per million words; the 173rd most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Pairs people search | |
| Sounds like |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); Bing searches in the United States: the average month from September 2025 to August 2026 (Microsoft Advertising keyword data through DataForSEO, read September 30, 2026).
How common is high?
High appears 562 times per million words in written English, the 173rd most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce high?
- /haɪ/
- [haɪ̯]
High has one syllable (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-high.ogg, En-uk-high.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Words people confuse with high
Word pairs people search, with the monthly searches for “a vs b” (G: Google, B: Bing, United States).
Sounds like: hi, hie (Wiktionary's homophone list; some hold only in some accents).
Also written: hie.
Sources: Google and Bing searches (September 2025 to August 2026, through DataForSEO); English Wiktionary (homophones, alternative spellings).
Forms of high
- higher comparative
- highest superlative
- hi informal
- highs plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- highing participle, present
- highed participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does high mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 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
- 2
Relatively elevated; rising or raised above the average or normal level from which elevation is measured.
- 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
- 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.
- 7
Most exalted; foremost.
the high priest, the high officials of the court, the high altar
- 8
Of great importance and consequence: grave (if negative) or solemn (if positive).
high crimes, the high festival of the sun
adverb
- 1
In or to an elevated position.
How high above land did you fly?
- 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
- 1
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.
- 2
The maximum atmospheric temperature recorded at a particular location, especially during one 24-hour period.
Today's high was 32 °C.
- 3
A period of euphoria, from excitement or from an intake of drugs.
That pill gave me a high for a few hours, before I had a comedown.
- 4
A drug that gives such a high.
- 5
informalA large area of elevated atmospheric pressure; an anticyclone.
A large high is centred on the Azores.
- 6
The highest card dealt or drawn.
- 7
informalEllipsis of high school.
verb
- 1
obsoleteTo rise.
The sun higheth.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
How do you abbreviate high?
Wiktionary records 2 abbreviations of high: H, HI.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
High in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | haut , élevé , vené , défoncé, foncedé, gelé |
| German | hoch, hooch , angegangen , hell |
| Portuguese | alto , elevado , chapado, drogado , máxima |
| Spanish | alto, elevado, en lo alto , colocado, drogado , colocón |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does high come from?
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”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).