[high and dry]{adv.} or {adj. phr.} 1. Up above the water; beyond the reach of splashing or waves. •/Mary was afraid she had left her towel where the tide would reach it, but she found it high and dry./ •/When the tide went out the boat was high and dry./ 2. Without anyone to help; alone and with no help. •/When the time came to put up the decorations, Mary was left high and dry./ •/At first the other boys helped, but when the work got hard. Bob found himself high and dry./ Compare: LEAVE IN THE LURCH, OUT IN THE COLD.

[high and low]{adv.} Everywhere. •/The police were searching for the criminal high and low, but they couldn’t find him./

[high-and-mighty]{adj.}, {informal} Feeling more important or superior to someone else; too proud of yourself. •/John wasn’t invited to the party, because he acted too high-and-mighty./ •/Mary become high-and-mighty when she won the prize, and Joan would not go around with her any more./ Compare: STUCK-UP.

[high as a kite]{adj.} 1. As excited and happy as one can possibly be. •/When Eric won the lottery he was high as a kite./ 2. Intoxicated or under the influence of some drug. •/Jeff has been drinking again and he is high as a kite./ Compare: THREE SHEETS IN/TO THE WIND.

[highbrow]{adj.} Very well educated or even over-educated; belonging to the educated middle class; sophisticated. •/Certain novels are not for everyone and are considered as highbrow entertainment./ Contrast: LOW BROW.

[high camp]{n.}, {slang}, {show business} 1. Kitsch, or pretentious material in bad taste that is still liked by higher class audiences. •/"The Potsdam Quartet" is a play full of high camp./ 2. An exaggerated movie or theater scene that loses believability. •/Scarecrow and Mrs. King and Sledge Hammer are so full of high camp that no sensible people watch them anymore./ [middle camp] and [low camp] refer to theatrical kitsch preferred by middle class and low class audiences, respectively.

[high-class]{adj.} Of the best quality; very good; superior. — Avoided by many careful speakers. •/When Mr. Brown got a raise in pay, Mrs. Brown started to look for a high-class apartment./ •/Mrs. Smith always gets her clothing at high-class shops./ •/Mr. Jones always gets his office workers from Burns Agency because they have high-class help./ Compare: FIRST-CLASS.

[higher education]{n.} Schooling after graduation from high school, especially in a college or university. •/Tom plans to get his higher education at the state university./

[higher-up]{n.}, {informal} One of the people who has one of the more important positions in an organization; an important official. •/The teacher’s problem was discussed by the higher-ups./ •/The local officers of the scout group approved the plan, but the state higher-ups did not accept it./

[high fashion] or [high style] {n. phr.} The new style in women’s dress set each season by designers in Paris or other fashion centers and accepted by fashionable women. •/The high styles designed in Paris are often quickly copied by makers of cheap clothing./

[high gear]{n. phr.}, {informal} Top speed; full activity. •/Production got into high gear after the vacation./ •/An advertising campaign for the new toothpaste promptly moved into high gear./

[high-handed]{adj.} Depending on force rather than right; bossy; dictatorial. •/With high-handed daring, John helped himself to the best food on the table./ •/Mr. Smith was a high-handed tyrant in his office./

[high-hat(1)]{adj.}, {slang} Treating others as inferior; acting above others. /It was an expensive place to eat, and the customers were likely to be a little high-hat./ /Jones acted high-hat toward anyone poorer than he./

[high-hat(2)]{v.}, {slang} To treat others as inferior; look down on. •/After she had married a rich man, Mary high-hatted her former friends./ •/"Don’t high-hat me," Fred warned, when Harry began to walk away as if he didn’t know him./ Compare: BRUSH OFF.

[high jinks]{n. phr.}, {informal} Noisy or rough gaiety; wild play; tricks. •/The sailors were on shore leave, and high jinks were to be expected./ •/The high school seniors engaged in high jinks after commencement./

[high off the hog] See: LIVE HIGH OFF THE HOG.

[high on]{adj. phr.} 1. Intoxicated on some drug or alcoholic drink. •/Rob was severely scolded by the dean for always being high on marijuana./ 2. Enthusiastic about something. •/Jeff is high on Beethoven and Brahms./

[high place]{n. phr.} A position of responsibility, honor, and power. •/Jones had reached a high place in the government at Washington./

[high seas]{n. phr.} The open ocean, not the waters near the coast. •/It was a big powerful liner built to sail on the high seas./ •/The ships of every country have the right to sail on the high seas./

[high season]{n. phr.} The time of year when the largest number of passengers are travelling; the time when airfare costs more. •/We had to pay $100 more for our tickets because it was the high season./ Contrast: LOW SEASON.

[high sign]{n. phr.}, {informal} A silent signal of recognition, greeting, or warning; an open or secret signal between two persons. — Used with "get" or "give". •/The Joneses saw us across the hotel dining room and gave us the high sign./ •/John could see that Grace wanted to tell him something, but he got her attention and frowned. She got the high sign and waited until the teacher had moved on before speaking./

[high-sounding]{adj.} Sounding important; said for showing off; too fancy. •/The politician’s speech was full of high-sounding words./ •/Mr. Brown filled his son with many high-sounding ideas about life./

[high-strung]{adj.} Nervous; sensitive; tense. •/Gary has been rather high-strung lately because of too much work at the office./

[high style] See: HIGH FASHION.

[hightail it]{v. phr.}, {slang} To travel fast; move rapidly. •/After school, Frank would hightail it home./ •/The two men who held up the bank hightailed it out of town./

[high time]{adj. phr.}, {used predicatively} (stress on "time") Dire, necessary, and sufficient circumstances prompting action. •/It is high time we sold the old house; it will fall apart within a year./

[highway] See: DIVIDED HIGHWAY or DUAL HIGHWAY.

[highway robbery]{n. phr.} 1. A hold-up of or theft from a person committed on an open road or street usually by an armed man. •/Highway robbery was common in England in Shakespeare’s day./ 2. An extremely high price or charge; a profiteer’s excessive charge. •/To someone from a small town, the prices of meals and theater tickets in New York often seem to he highway robbery./

[hill] See: GRASS IS ALWAYS GREENER ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE FENCE or GRASS IS ALWAYS GREENER ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE HILL, HEAD FOR THE HILLS.

[hilt] See: TO THE HILT or UP TO THE HILT.

[hinge on] or [hinge upon] {v.} To depend on as decisive: be decided by. •/In a dictatorship, everything hinges on one man./ •/A tobacco grower’s income for the year may hinge on what the weather is like in a few summer weeks./

[hired man]{n. phr.} A man employed to do jobs every day about a house or farm. •/The hired man was sick, and a lot of the daily chores were not done./