as in pinnacle
the highest part or point
he hit the high-water mark of his acting career when he played Tiny Tim in a school play
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Recent Examples of high-water mark
The Weeknd reached a new high-water mark on Spotify this week.
—
Glenn Rowley, Billboard, 27 Feb. 2023
How San Francisco settles the debate could reverberate throughout the reparations movement, setting a high-water mark for an effort that has been criticized for, so far, producing small sums.
—Emmanuel Felton, Washington Post, 27 Feb. 2023
This year’s crop of competitors is a far cry from recent years when the starting roster has approached triple digits, hitting a high-water mark of 96 mushers in 2008 (though a more modest number, 78, crossed the finish line).
—Zachariah Hughes, Anchorage Daily News, 22 Feb. 2023
In Paso Robles, dozens of makeshift encampments sprang up along roadways, above the Salinas’ high-water mark.
—Jeremy Miller, WIRED, 18 Feb. 2023
See All Example Sentences for high-water mark
Glenn Rowley, Billboard, 27 Feb. 2023
How San Francisco settles the debate could reverberate throughout the reparations movement, setting a high-water mark for an effort that has been criticized for, so far, producing small sums.
—Emmanuel Felton, Washington Post, 27 Feb. 2023
This year’s crop of competitors is a far cry from recent years when the starting roster has approached triple digits, hitting a high-water mark of 96 mushers in 2008 (though a more modest number, 78, crossed the finish line).
—Zachariah Hughes, Anchorage Daily News, 22 Feb. 2023
In Paso Robles, dozens of makeshift encampments sprang up along roadways, above the Salinas’ high-water mark.
—Jeremy Miller, WIRED, 18 Feb. 2023
See All Example Sentences for high-water mark
Recent Examples of Synonyms for high-water mark
Noun
-
In those brief chapters, Americans built this nation from 13 humble colonies into the pinnacle of human civilization and human freedom.—
Dallas Morning News,
Dallas Morning News,
25 Feb. 2026
-
In those brief chapters, Americans built this nation from 13 humble colonies into the pinnacle of human civilization and human freedom, the strongest, wealthiest, most powerful, most successful nation in all of history.—
TIME Staff,
Time,
25 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
The path to the top is not professionally supported.—
Philipp Lahm,
New York Times,
28 Feb. 2026
-
Heat 2 cups milk in the top of a double boiler just until bubbles start to form on the bottom of the pan.—
Indianapolis Star,
IndyStar,
27 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
The basic unit for that is a degree; for example, the angle from the horizon to the point directly above an observer, called the zenith, is 90 degrees.—
Phil Plait,
Scientific American,
20 Feb. 2026
-
By the early 2010s Gertler was at the zenith of his influence.—
Nicolas Niarchos,
Vanity Fair,
20 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Upstairs, corridors wrap around a striking double-height bamboo atrium—real moso bamboo is planted at the building's core.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
27 Feb. 2026
-
Lindsay Lohan took this season’s fresh-off-the runway styles to new heights in a photoshoot shot 60 floors up on one of the most famous helipads in the world.—
Lara Walsh,
InStyle,
26 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Beginning July 1, however, private cars now face a three-hour parking limit at Logan Pass, a popular viewpoint at the culmination of Going-to-the-Sun Road.—
Outside,
Outside,
24 Feb. 2026
-
The games were originally teased at the culmination of the 2024 Paris Summer Olympics.—
Emily Zemler,
Rolling Stone,
23 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Its peak lasts 58 minutes, but the entire duration is approximately 5 hours and 39 minutes.—
Lisa Stardust,
Vogue,
2 Mar. 2026
-
The Robeson peak and Manuilova’s bust made this positional correspondence visible.—
Anel Rakhimzhanova,
Artforum,
1 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
But this discovery confirms that these creatures were globally distributed, filling apex-predator roles across the ancient supercontinents.—
Mrigakshi Dixit,
Interesting Engineering,
23 Feb. 2026
-
Except her shell is rather flat compared to others’, its spiral unremarkable, its apex nearly unnoticeable.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
23 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“High-water mark.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/high-water%20mark. Accessed 3 Mar. 2026.
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