as in shrill
having a high musical pitch or range
the high-pitched sound of a siren
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Recent Examples of high-pitched
Depending on the keyboard and its modifications, their sound can range from high-pitched and hollow to deep and full.
—
Henri Robbins, Wired News, 9 Dec. 2025
Suddenly, the quiet is broken by a voice, high-pitched and smiling.
—Literary Hub, 20 Oct. 2025
Another wrong impression involves Morrison’s voice, which seems excited and high-pitched.
—Kori Rumore, Chicago Tribune, 6 May 2025
The Nashville singer-songwriter waited a full day with the high-pitched, pulsing sound before calling her doctor to check her ears.
—Adrianna Rodriguez, USA Today, 30 Apr. 2025
Emergency vehicle sirens are high-pitched, and the rumblings from large trucks are lower-pitched.
—Emilie Le Beau Lucchesi, Discover Magazine, 18 Mar. 2025
For example, pain cries are often loud, high-pitched and harsh to grab the attention of listeners and elicit aid.
—Katarzyna Pisanski, Scientific American, 21 Feb. 2025
But the sound was really high-pitched and sounded more like an anxious small dog.
—Scott Roxborough, The Hollywood Reporter, 13 Oct. 2024
Henri Robbins, Wired News, 9 Dec. 2025
Suddenly, the quiet is broken by a voice, high-pitched and smiling.
—Literary Hub, 20 Oct. 2025
Another wrong impression involves Morrison’s voice, which seems excited and high-pitched.
—Kori Rumore, Chicago Tribune, 6 May 2025
The Nashville singer-songwriter waited a full day with the high-pitched, pulsing sound before calling her doctor to check her ears.
—Adrianna Rodriguez, USA Today, 30 Apr. 2025
Emergency vehicle sirens are high-pitched, and the rumblings from large trucks are lower-pitched.
—Emilie Le Beau Lucchesi, Discover Magazine, 18 Mar. 2025
For example, pain cries are often loud, high-pitched and harsh to grab the attention of listeners and elicit aid.
—Katarzyna Pisanski, Scientific American, 21 Feb. 2025
But the sound was really high-pitched and sounded more like an anxious small dog.
—Scott Roxborough, The Hollywood Reporter, 13 Oct. 2024
Recent Examples of Synonyms for high-pitched
shrill
Adjective
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What's more, this door alarm features three sensitivity levels and emits a loud, shrill sound that will instantly scare an intruder away.—
Stephanie Gray,
Travel + Leisure,
11 Jan. 2026
-
When Nosferatu showed his corpselike face, the Wonder Morton’s Vox Humana (human voice) and concert-flute pipes buzzed together in a shrill cluster.—
Alex Ross,
New Yorker,
22 Dec. 2025
Cite this Entry
“High-pitched.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/high-pitched. Accessed 16 Jan. 2026.
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