high tide

IPA/ˌhaɪ ˈtaɪd/
IPA/ˌhaɪ ˈtaɪd/

high tide — noun

1. the daily point in the tidal cycle when ocean or river water climbs to its maxim

1.nounA2
Definition

the daily point in the tidal cycle when ocean or river water climbs to its maximum height and spreads furthest onto the shore, beach, or embankment

Example

The fishing boats returned to the harbor just before high tide arrived.

preposition: before / after / at high tide

At high tide, the water covers the entire wooden boardwalk along the beach.

Common collocations
  • at high tide
  • before high tide
  • after high tide
  • high tide arrives / comes / passes
  • high tide level
  • high tide line
  • high tide mark
Synonyms
  • high water

    interchangeable in literal sense; 'high water' is slightly more common in inland river contexts

  • flood tide

    refers specifically to the rising phase of the tide leading up to high tide, not the peak itself

  • spring tide

    an unusually high high tide that happens during a full or new moon; a subset of high tides

Antonyms
  • low tide

    the daily point when water is at its minimum height on the shore

  • ebb tide

    the outgoing phase after high tide, not the low point itself

Grammar Patterns

at high tide

high tide + verb (comes, arrives, recedes)

Usage Note

Often contrasted with low tide. The exact time of high tide shifts roughly 50 minutes later each day because of the Moon's orbit. In informal speech, speakers usually say 'high tide is at…' rather than 'the high tide is at…' when giving a time.

Common Mistakes

The high tide will come at 3 p.m. today.
High tide will be at 3 p.m. today.
Omitting 'the' is the standard pattern when stating the scheduled time for high tide.

2. the peak moment of success, strength, or development in a process, such as withi

2.nounB2
Definition

the peak moment of success, strength, or development in a process, such as within a career, a social movement, a political campaign, or a civilization's history

Example

The high tide of the Roman Empire came during the reign of the emperor Trajan.

the high tide of + historical period

Many historians view the 1920s as the high tide of the women's suffrage movement worldwide.

Common collocations
  • the high tide of something
  • reach one's high tide
  • mark the high tide of
  • represent the high tide of
Synonyms
  • peak

    more common in everyday English and less literary than 'high tide'

  • zenith

    slightly more formal, often used for careers or celestial metaphors

  • climax

    emphasises the dramatic turning point that comes before a decline

  • height

    used in the pattern 'at the height of' rather than 'the high tide of'

Antonyms
  • low point

    the least successful moment; antonym in both literal and figurative senses

  • nadir

    formal or literary term for the lowest point, opposite of zenith

  • ebb

    used in the phrase 'at a low ebb'; suggests decline rather than a static low point

Grammar Patterns

the high tide of + noun

Usage Note

Primarily used in formal, literary, or historical writing rather than everyday conversation. The phrase almost always appears with of (the high tide of something). Unlike the literal sense, this figurative sense does not take the time-announcing pattern (do not say 'high tide was in 1999'; instead say 'the high tide of X was in 1999').

Common Mistakes

The high tide of his career was winning the championship.
The high tide of his career was the championship victory.
A noun phrase, not a clause, should follow 'high tide of.'

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

All four describe the rising of water levels, but they differ in precision and scope. High tide is the everyday term for the daily peak of the tidal cycle — the moment the water stops rising and begins to fall. High water is nearly synonymous but appears more often in river contexts (e.g. 'the river reached high water mark'). Flood tide refers specifically to the incoming phase before high tide, not the peak itself ('the flood tide rushed into the estuary'). Spring tide is a specialised subset: an unusually high high tide that occurs around the full and new moon, when the Sun and Moon align. In a sentence: 'The spring tide produced the highest high water of the year, and the flood tide swept debris far up the beach.'

high tide ↗high waterflood tide ↗spring tide ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

Phrases

  • at high tide
  • high tide mark
  • high tide line
  • the high tide of

Prepositions

Etymology

Old EnglishMiddle EnglishModern English

The word tide comes from Old English tīd, meaning 'time' or 'season.' In early English, tide referred to any fixed period or occasion (as in eventide or Eastertide). Around the 14th century, tide narrowed to mean the periodic rise and fall of the sea — the original connection being that the ocean's movement marks the passage of time. The compound high tide appeared in the 16th century, first as a nautical term and later gaining a figurative sense by the 19th century.

First known use

1546

1546, in the meaning defined at sense 1