1
as in aristocratic
being or characteristic of a person who has an offensive air of superiority and tends to ignore or disdain anyone regarded as inferior
at the wedding reception the bride's high-hat relatives did their considerable best to ignore us
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in arrogant
having a feeling of superiority that shows itself in an overbearing attitude
several high-hat society types arrived after we did, but they got seated first
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in to disdain
to show contempt for
one presidential candidate presents himself as an outsider who has long been high-hatted by the Beltway elite
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to isolate
to deliberately ignore or treat rudely
was high-hatted by an old college friend who's now a power player on Wall Street
Synonyms & Similar Words
as in hard hat
Related Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of high-hat
Literary Hub, 9 Oct. 2025
Over the last few years, a bevy of high-hat hotels have begun competing for the Big Apple’s best guests.
—Christopher Cameron, Robb Report, 9 Apr. 2025
For the opening scene, in which a couple makes out in a car, singer Stuart A. Staples croons the title track, with some café jazz accompaniment: Bass, piano, and lightly tapped high-hat.
—Indiewire Staff, IndieWire, 14 Aug. 2024
The bass, high-hat, guitar, and vocals all remain distinct in this busy mix and benefit from strong detail when the track fully kicks in.
—PCMAG, 10 July 2024
As the drummer counted in on his high-hat my mind went blank: not just on how to play the song, but how to play guitar, how to stay standing, how to blink, breathe, and stay conscious.
—Chris Fleming, SPIN, 4 Apr. 2023
Adam Shell, USA TODAY, 17 Mar. 2025
Going high hat just did not fit, and on Sept. 9, 1927, the Bernheimer flags came down.
—Jacques Kelly, Baltimore Sun, 4 June 2022
Deja stifled a yawn and cranked up her music; the warring bass and high hat thrummed in her chest and kept her mostly awake.
—Brittany N. Williams, NOLA.com, 26 Oct. 2020
The song -- a frenetic trap banger built from buzzy synths and high hat -- debuted at No. 1 on the Hot 100 on March 2, 2013, the same week Billboard started factoring YouTube streaming data into the chart's methodology.
—Katie Bain, Billboard, 21 Nov. 2019
Here comes one now, rattling catastrophically, like Max Roach whaling on the high hat.
—Alexandra Schwartz, The New Yorker, 18 Nov. 2019
Adjective
The sand crackling against the screen door became a high-hat drum.
—Literary Hub, 9 Oct. 2025
Over the last few years, a bevy of high-hat hotels have begun competing for the Big Apple’s best guests.
—Christopher Cameron, Robb Report, 9 Apr. 2025
For the opening scene, in which a couple makes out in a car, singer Stuart A. Staples croons the title track, with some café jazz accompaniment: Bass, piano, and lightly tapped high-hat.
—Indiewire Staff, IndieWire, 14 Aug. 2024
The bass, high-hat, guitar, and vocals all remain distinct in this busy mix and benefit from strong detail when the track fully kicks in.
—PCMAG, 10 July 2024
As the drummer counted in on his high-hat my mind went blank: not just on how to play the song, but how to play guitar, how to stay standing, how to blink, breathe, and stay conscious.
—Chris Fleming, SPIN, 4 Apr. 2023
Noun
Instead of high hats, use wall washers, which bounce light off the walls and space.
—Adam Shell, USA TODAY, 17 Mar. 2025
Going high hat just did not fit, and on Sept. 9, 1927, the Bernheimer flags came down.
—Jacques Kelly, Baltimore Sun, 4 June 2022
Deja stifled a yawn and cranked up her music; the warring bass and high hat thrummed in her chest and kept her mostly awake.
—Brittany N. Williams, NOLA.com, 26 Oct. 2020
The song -- a frenetic trap banger built from buzzy synths and high hat -- debuted at No. 1 on the Hot 100 on March 2, 2013, the same week Billboard started factoring YouTube streaming data into the chart's methodology.
—Katie Bain, Billboard, 21 Nov. 2019
Here comes one now, rattling catastrophically, like Max Roach whaling on the high hat.
—Alexandra Schwartz, The New Yorker, 18 Nov. 2019
Recent Examples of Synonyms for high-hat
Adjective
-
Set the scene The streets of Forte—as insiders call it—are a maze of tall box hedges and gates that shelter private villas built for wealthy and aristocratic Italian families.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
23 Apr. 2026
-
All of these Les Lalanne pieces belong to the collection of Jean and Terry de Gunzburg — Jean is a Canadian of French aristocratic descent and a Bronfman of the Seagram’s empire; Terry was the creative director of YSL beauty.—
David Lê,
Curbed,
20 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
To this point, the Heat arguably have been too stubborn, or too arrogant, in belief that the quick fix was just around the corner.—
Ira Winderman,
Sun Sentinel,
15 Apr. 2026
-
His style is relaxed and confident, not arrogant.—
Tara Klein,
SPIN,
15 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
At his behest Aurangzeb—who disdained poetry—sent agents across India and Persia to assemble a literary circle befitting her.—
Encyclopedia Britannica,
Encyclopedia Britannica,
9 Apr. 2026
-
In Sondheim’s body of work, Okrent searches for the autobiographical resonances that Sondheim himself mostly disdained.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
17 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Burke explained, however, the homes may be isolated by water covering the road.—
Madeline King,
Chicago Tribune,
17 Apr. 2026
-
Disconnecting the negative cable first isolates the battery and eliminates that possibility.—
John Paul Senior Manager Public Affairs And Traffic Safety Aaa Northeast,
Hartford Courant,
17 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
Wearing a hard hat, the charter's principal, Justin Blietz, described his vision.—
Cory Turner,
NPR,
19 Apr. 2026
-
Later, the host dons a hard hat to tour a multi-billion-dollar, decades-long project that will ease freight and passenger train bottlenecks with new bridges and underpasses.—
Philip Potempa,
Chicago Tribune,
16 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
Since then — indeed, since the Great Recession of 2007-2009 — the private equity sector has been promoting itself as a source of financial returns superior than those of conventional stock portfolios while glossing over cavils such as Buffett’s.—
Business Columnist,
Los Angeles Times,
10 Apr. 2026
-
Every shark movie owes a debt to the sacred mother Jaws, but the thriller about bitey creatures spreading carnage and mayhem in bad weather that Thrash most resembles is Alexandre Aja’s superior nail-biter, Crawl.—
David Rooney,
HollywoodReporter,
10 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Bugles are very disrespected these days.—
Shilpa Uskokovic,
Bon Appetit Magazine,
21 Apr. 2026
-
The latter effort unintentionally stands in stark contrast to the views of prominent politicians who publicly disrespect POW bravery.—
Michael Peregrine,
Chicago Tribune,
17 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Generally, my blowout starts to get limp and stiff around day three (despite sleeping in overnight blowout rods), but the week of my Cécred test, my mane still looked fresh-out-the-salon by day five.—
Kiana Murden,
Vogue,
22 Mar. 2026
-
Testers noted how plush or stiff the mattress felt after consistent sleep on the mattresses, from a boxed memory foam to a hybrid bed.—
Kristi Kellogg,
Architectural Digest,
27 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“High-hat.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/high-hat. Accessed 24 Apr. 2026.
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