highness

C2+ Topic:Abstract Ideas

Also spelled high-ness

US /ˈhaɪnəs/ UK /ˈhaɪnəs/ See IPA manual

Meanings

1

noun
the state of being high; a title of honour for royalty

Her Highness graciously received the visiting envoys.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 noun · the state of being high; a... loftinesseminence elevation majestyexaltedness

Opposites

lowness baseness

Word family

Related forms high higher highest

Etymology

From Old English hēanes ('height, exaltation'), from hēah ('high') + the noun-forming suffix -ness; the royal title sense ('Your Highness') developed in Middle English.

hēah Old English *hauhaz Proto-Germanic

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Abstract Ideas Word Formation & Derivatives

External links

# highness

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2+
**Part of speech:** noun
**IPA (US):** /ˈhaɪnəs/
**IPA (UK):** /ˈhaɪnəs/

## Meanings
1. the state of being high; a title of honour for royalty

## Examples
- Her Highness graciously received the visiting envoys.

## Synonyms
- loftiness
- eminence
- elevation
- majesty
- exaltedness

## Antonyms
- lowness
- baseness

## Related Forms
- high
- higher
- highest

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: hēah
- Root: *hauhaz

## Etymology
From Old English hēanes ('height, exaltation'), from hēah ('high') + the noun-forming suffix -ness; the royal title sense ('Your Highness') developed in Middle English.

## AI Etymology
highness comes from Old English hēanes ('height, exaltation'), from hēah ('high') + the noun-forming suffix -ness; the royal title sense ('Your Highness') developed in Middle English. Morphologically, the ending is part of the etymology: the suffix is attached to the older base named in the history, producing a later English derivative. In present English, the noun sense is "the state of being high; a title of honour for royalty", so the historical development ends in a clearly identifiable modern dictionary use. The same base also appears in related forms such as high, higher, and highest. Its semantic neighborhood includes loftiness, eminence, elevation, and majesty, which helps locate the modern sense without adding a separate etymological claim. The named historical forms include Old English hēah and Proto-Germanic *hauhaz.

## Topics
- Abstract Ideas
- Word Formation & Derivatives

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