Height Definition & Meaning

American

British

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Etymology

Examples

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Synonyms height American [hahyt] / haɪt / Sometimes hight nonstandard, heighth

noun

1. extent or distance upward.

   The balloon stopped rising at a height of 500 feet.

   Antonyms: depth

2. distance upward from a given level to a fixed point.

   the height from the ground to the first floor; the height of an animal at the shoulder.

   Antonyms: depth

3. the distance between the lowest and highest points of a person standing upright; stature.

   She is five feet in height.

   Synonyms: tallness

4. considerable or great altitude or elevation.

   the height of the mountains.

5. Often heights

   1. a high place above a level; a hill or mountain.

      They stood on the heights overlooking the valley.

   2. the highest part; top; apex; summit.

      In his dreams he reached the heights.

   Synonyms: prominence

6. the highest point; utmost degree.

   the height of power; the height of pleasure.

   Synonyms: culmination, zenith, acme, pinnacle, peak

7. Archaic. high rank in social status.

height British / haɪt /

noun

1. the vertical distance from the bottom or lowest part of something to the top or apex

2. the vertical distance of an object or place above the ground or above sea level; altitude

3. relatively great altitude or distance from the bottom to the top

4. the topmost point; summit

5. astronomy the angular distance of a celestial body above the horizon

6. the period of greatest activity or intensity

   the height of the battle

7. an extreme example of its kind

   the height of rudeness

8. (often plural) an area of high ground

9. (often plural) the state of being far above the ground

   I don't like heights

10. (often plural) a position of influence, fame, or power

    the giddy heights they occupied in the 1980s

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Spelling

Height, and not heighth, is considered the standard English form for this word.

Related Words

Height, altitude, elevation refer to distance above a level. Height denotes extent upward (as from foot to head) as well as any measurable distance above a given level: The tree grew to a height of ten feet. They looked down from a great height. Altitude usually refers to the distance, determined by instruments, above a given level, commonly mean sea level: altitude of an airplane. Elevation implies a distance to which something has been raised or uplifted above a level: a hill's elevation above the surrounding country, above sea level.

Etymology

Origin of height

First recorded before 900; Middle English; Old English hīehtho. See high, -th 1

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

As disappointed buyers of Clorox, Peloton or Campbell Soup at the height of the pandemic will tell you, there’s no sense sticking around when a brief sales bonanza is welcomed with such fanfare.

From The Wall Street Journal

The fury was at its height on the hour when Arsenal keeper David Raya made a save from Georginio Rutter down to his right then slumped to the ground holding his shoulder, requiring lengthy treatment.

From BBC

Golden Dawn entered the Greek parliament in 2012 at the height of Greece's economic crisis, when it came third in the election with 18 MPs elected.

From BBC

The area arguably hasn’t returned to its pre-pandemic heights, as many office floors sit empty and a string of high-profile restaurant closures struck the community.

From Los Angeles Times

At the height of its success Brewdog owned four breweries and about 100 pubs around the globe and was said to be worth more than $1bn.

From BBC

Related Words

• ceiling
• crest
• elevation
• extent
• peak
• pinnacle
• prominence
• stature

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.