1
as in highbrow
Related Words
Relevance
Dissimilar Words
2
as in sententious
Related Words
Dissimilar Words
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of high-toned
The gambit that Shelley somehow comes to possess her fictional creation is sustained, as Ida alternates between a very American dialect and a more high-toned British accent.
—
Peter Tonguette, The Washington Examiner, 13 Mar. 2026
The coastal Mediterranean meets West Indies vibe feels right at home in South Florida, and the refined yet relaxed decor is similarly suited to the locale’s high-toned but low-key environment.
—Tori Latham, Robb Report, 10 Dec. 2025
That’s just the latest accolade for the Yorba Linda municipal course that continually scores above its weight in a high-toned category.
—Greg Mellen, Oc Register, 19 Sep. 2025
Many global rums are clean and light by design; Hampden’s are unabashedly expressive—ripe, high-toned, and unmistakable.
—Gina Pace, Forbes.com, 8 Sep. 2025
Blake is accused of having drifted into high-toned seriousness; Albert, now writing for television, is branded a sellout.
—Justin Chang, The New Yorker, 19 Mar. 2025
Bright high-toned notes of cherry and strawberry show on the palate with an intriguing texture that hints at a bit of tannin.
—Katie Kelly Bell, Forbes, 23 Dec. 2024
Peter Tonguette, The Washington Examiner, 13 Mar. 2026
The coastal Mediterranean meets West Indies vibe feels right at home in South Florida, and the refined yet relaxed decor is similarly suited to the locale’s high-toned but low-key environment.
—Tori Latham, Robb Report, 10 Dec. 2025
That’s just the latest accolade for the Yorba Linda municipal course that continually scores above its weight in a high-toned category.
—Greg Mellen, Oc Register, 19 Sep. 2025
Many global rums are clean and light by design; Hampden’s are unabashedly expressive—ripe, high-toned, and unmistakable.
—Gina Pace, Forbes.com, 8 Sep. 2025
Blake is accused of having drifted into high-toned seriousness; Albert, now writing for television, is branded a sellout.
—Justin Chang, The New Yorker, 19 Mar. 2025
Bright high-toned notes of cherry and strawberry show on the palate with an intriguing texture that hints at a bit of tannin.
—Katie Kelly Bell, Forbes, 23 Dec. 2024
Recent Examples of Synonyms for high-toned
Adjective
-
The tension between highbrow and lowbrow comedy, and what is deemed acceptable by image-conscious Black middle-class audiences, continues to ignite fierce debate—nearly a century after Stepin Fetchit first appeared on-screen.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
25 Mar. 2026
-
This kind of boosterism—no less evident in Bernard Lewis’s highbrow argument in The New Yorker that Muslims fear modernity than in Niall Ferguson’s entreaties for the Bush Administration to resume the British Empire’s task of civilizing the natives—always seemed bafflingly sterile to me.—
Christine Smallwood,
Harpers Magazine,
24 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
This conclusion will shock anyone who knows Twain only through his writing, in which the author is wise and witty and, above all, devastating in his portrayal of frauds, cretins, and sententious bores.—
Graeme Wood,
The Atlantic,
9 May 2025
-
Audiences have no choice but to exist in the theatrical moment, without recourse to linear logic, sententious language or psychological epiphanies.—
Charles McNulty,
Los Angeles Times,
16 Mar. 2025
Adjective
-
Rather than lean into the chaos the challenge seemed to demand, Jane went cerebral.—
H. Alan Scott,
MSNBC Newsweek,
30 Mar. 2026
-
And the hour-long results that premiere on the platform Friday are a mix of the cerebral and silly that audiences have come to expect from the Problemista filmmaker and former Saturday Night Live writer.—
Mikey O'Connell,
HollywoodReporter,
27 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
Despite this high-minded rhetoric, Talarico has benefited from reams of cash from corporate lobbyists, billionaires, and business executives who have flooded Texas on his behalf.—
Robert Schmad,
The Washington Examiner,
19 Mar. 2026
-
The company’s move underscores how the high-minded intentions that guided AI startups in their early years have increasingly collided with the pressures to make money and beat out the competition.—
Bloomberg,
Mercury News,
25 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
Their feelings develop quietly, the burn paired with intellectual restraint, their romance remaining unresolved until far into the novel.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
3 Apr. 2026
-
Looking at a neck and imagining the scales and seeing the notes that work on the neck is more of an intellectual exercise.—
George Varga,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
3 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
There was Coppola’s over-the-top defense of his friend with a grandiloquent gesture (Tanen declined to sell).—
Michael O’Donnell,
The Atlantic,
10 Feb. 2026
-
Reform—Within Reason Malthus aimed to puncture Godwin’s grandiloquent progressivism.—
Roy Scranton,
JSTOR Daily,
18 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
One does detect in Iran hawks a kind of 'will to destruction' and hatred of boring, civilized diplomacy.—
Jesus Mesa,
MSNBC Newsweek,
31 Mar. 2026
-
The best actor nominee isn’t the only one noticing a significant change on the red carpet this season — though some events, like the annual VF Oscar Party, have always been more civilized than others.—
Rebecca Ford,
Vanity Fair,
12 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
The syrupy sweetness brought to mind a pancake, while the faintly cultured cheese turned it savory.—
Cesar Hernandez,
San Francisco Chronicle,
28 Mar. 2026
-
Look for cultured cottage cheese to get an extra dose of probiotics.—
Philipp Wehsack,
Vogue,
28 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“High-toned.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/high-toned. Accessed 4 Apr. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
