- 1The measurement from base to top or (of a standing person) from head to foot: columns rising to 65 feet in height both men were of average heightMore example sentences
- She was average in height, about five foot five at most, though she was no less beautiful for this.
- The dead man was aged between 25 and 45, was five feet ten in height, weighed ten-and-a-half stones and had dark brown wavy hair.
- The stone is about twelve feet in height and four in breadth with the hole near the top.
- 1.1Elevation above ground or a recognized level (typically sea level): the glider is gaining heightMore example sentences
- Climate is in turn controlled not only by latitude but also by height above sea level.
- Consider, first, a fairly crude altimeter, a device used for measuring altitude or height above sea level.
- It is a long way, and the average height above sea level is more than 2000 metres.
- 1.2The quality of being tall or high: his height seems to work to his advantageMore example sentences
- The most significant outcome is weakening of the skeleton leading to fractures, loss of height, impaired quality of life and even death.
- I always stipulate: stand tall, use your height.
- I'm not very tall, but what height I do have is mostly legs.
- 2A high place or area: he’s terrified of heightsMore example sentences
- A mum-of-two is planning a daring jump out of a plane - despite being terrified of heights.
- They split into three units, posted themselves on heights overlooking the trail.
- With some stunts requiring her to withstand six times the force of gravity, her fear of heights was soon forgotten.
- 3The most intense part or period of something: the height of the tourist season at the height of his career they took consumerism to new heightsMore example sentences
- By 1998, he was the most popular British prime minister in recorded history, still at the height of his honeymoon period.
- She was at the height of the initial period of her career and once more every single song on the album is alive.
- Ostensibly, the theme of the exhibit was the effect of colonialism on Africa, particularly at the height of the colonial period.
- 3.1An extreme instance or example of something: it would be the height of bad manners not to attend the weddingMore example sentences
- Are they, for example, the height of London street fashion?
- A lady of the utmost integrity, Celia commanded the height of regard and respect throughout the region.
- From the height of urban iniquity we move to the ultimate city stillness.
Old English hēhthu (in the sense 'top of something'), of Germanic origin; related to Dutch hoogte, also to high.