HIGH-WATER MARK Synonyms: 47 Similar and Opposite Words

high-water mark

noun

Definition of high-water mark

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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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-water mark 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 The Weeknd reached a new high-water mark on Spotify this week. — Glenn Rowley, Billboard, 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

Fourteen years earlier, his debut feature, Ossessione, had effectively birthed Italian neorealism, and Visconti had followed it up with La Terra Trema (1948), one of the absolute pinnacles of the movement.

— Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 24 July 2026
The same cannot be said of GB1, the new brand name for Ainslie’s fourth assault on the America’s Cup, regarded as the pinnacle of international sailing.

— Andrew Rice, New York Times, 24 July 2026

Definition of pinnacle

Noun

That could be a bad sign for Everton Blair, the former Gwinnett County School Board chairman who needs a strong turnout from his home county in order to rise to the top of the five-person contest.

— Tia Mitchell, AJC.com, 24 July 2026
But most of those players were unable to establish themselves at the top of the game with Madrid or flourish within the national team’s style.

— Pol Ballús, New York Times, 24 July 2026

Definition of top

Noun

Civilizations could have risen to their zenith and crumbled in the time our micrometeoroid spent traversing the unfeeling expanse of interplanetary space, but its demise lasted but a fraction of a second.

— Anthony Wood, Space.com, 21 July 2026
There was a time when the odd chart slot and a feature on the soundtrack of the latest FIFA game would mark the mainstream zenith of a breakthrough junglist.

— Will Pritchard, Pitchfork, 20 July 2026

Definition of zenith

Noun

In the fall, the flashy Waldorf Astoria Hotel & Residences, designed like a stack of nine askew cubes, will soar past to its final height of 1,049 feet.

— Jacqui Palumbo, CNN Money, 21 July 2026
By the time Phaedra’s birthday dinner rolls around, the sound of Porsha sharpening her knives reaches its height.

— Ile-Ife Okantah, Vulture, 20 July 2026

Definition of height

Noun

The day’s protest, which marked the culmination of weeks of building momentum, then escalated in clashes with authorities.

— Connor Greene, Time, 22 July 2026
This latest development marks the culmination of a year of attempts at safeguarding the LuisaViaRoma business.

— Martino Carrera, Footwear News, 21 July 2026

Definition of culmination

Noun

And the district just came off its highest-profile summer in years, with World Cup watch parties drawing more than 7,000 people to the plaza on peak nights.

— Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 25 July 2026
That expertise is particularly valuable during the Mediterranean’s quieter season, when opportunities often exist that simply are not possible during peak summer months.

— Robb Report Studio, Robb Report, 24 July 2026

Definition of peak

Noun

Research indicates that, as apex predators, sharks accumulate high levels of heavy metals — including arsenic, mercury and lead — in their blood and tissues.

— ABC News, ABC News, 17 July 2026
Stop in at Dune Bird Winery for a Riesling or an espresso before continuing on to Northport, the apex of the route.

— Stacy Conde, Midwest Living, 9 July 2026

Definition of apex

Browse Nearby Words

high-voltage

high-water mark

high-water marks

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Style

“High-water mark.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/high-water%20mark. Accessed 26 Jul. 2026.

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Synonyms of high-water mark

noun

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