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high water

high water

11 3.4
The time when the tide reaches its highest level
  • noun
  • /haɪ ˈwɔːtər/
translation icon : pleamar
  • Low water exposes sandbars, and high water can flood the river, making it dangerous.
  • high water mark
  • high water period
  • mean high water

Examples

  • The flood caused high water to reach the evacuation line in the nearby neighborhoods.

  • The tide's going out now, but it'll be high water again before dark.

  • Yet though there was high water, there had been no rain.

    Fiction book (1990)
  • During the high-water period, property owners did not push the state to compensate them for loss.

    Academic text (1991)
  • The tide's coming in, and high water reaches this cave sometimes.

  • The freighter docks at high water.

  • The tiny city on the Adriatic faces threats not only from tourists but also from high water, pollution, and an aging population.

    Academic text (2009)
  • There's nothing Travis likes better than to spend the weekend camping on one of the hilltop islands created by high water deep in the Bottom land.

  • It lingered through six high tides and inundated the islands with punishing winds and extreme high waters.

  • The headlights beamed out into the willows along Tomichi Creek, and the high water shone like muted diamonds in the moonlight.

    Fiction book (1990)

Synonyms

high tide
vshigh water
26 1.8

The time when the sea reaches its highest level

uses a different noun for referring to the same tidal peak
highwater
vshigh water
5.9

The time when the sea or river reaches its highest level

is written as two separate words instead of one

Antonyms

2 3.7

The lowest tide level at the shore or in a river

How High

flood
286 1.0
high water
11 3.4
water level
20 2.1
low water
2 3.7

Surface Forms

high water singular
high waters plural

Morphology

high + water

The meaning 'the state of the tide when the water reaches its highest level' is directly and compositionally derived from 'high' (at a great vertical level) + 'water' (the sea/river), so a learner who knows both words can infer the phrase. This noun phrase is a straightforward, cross-linguistically common description of raised water level and follows normal compounding patterns, making it immediately comprehensible to a B1 learner.

Etymology

The noun high water comes from the sea, where the water rises very high and reaches its highest level, sometimes covering low land. So, 'high water' means 'the time when the tide is highest'.