high-grade
/ˌhaɪ ˈɡreɪd/ (bre, ipa) · /ˌhaɪ ˈɡreɪd/ (ame, ipa) · /ˈhī-ˈgrād/ (ame, mw)
high-grade — adjective
1. made from materials or methods that are clearly better than what is usually avai
made from materials or methods that are clearly better than what is usually available, so the final product is more valuable, more reliable, or longer-lasting.
The watchmaker uses only high-grade Swiss steel for the gears inside each timepiece.
attributive: high-grade + material noun
Paloma chose a high-grade olive oil for the salad dressing she served at the dinner.
high-grade + food product
The factory in Osaka exports high-grade ceramic plates to luxury hotels across Europe.
Builders prefer high-grade copper wiring because it carries electricity safely for many decades.
Darius spent extra money on high-grade leather shoes that would last him at least ten years.
- premium
common in marketing language for the most expensive tier of a product
- top-quality
everyday spoken alternative; less technical than high-grade
- superior
more formal; often compares two specific items rather than a whole class
文法句型
high-grade + noun
用法筆記
Almost always attributive (placed before a noun); rarely used after 'be'. Common with materials (steel, copper, oil), foods, fuels, and technical components.
常見錯誤
2. in medical contexts, describing a disease, tumour, or fever that is at the more
in medical contexts, describing a disease, tumour, or fever that is at the more dangerous end of its scale and likely to spread quickly or cause serious harm.
Doctors confirmed that Yan had a high-grade tumour that needed immediate chemotherapy.
domain medical: high-grade + tumour
The child arrived at the clinic with a high-grade fever of nearly forty degrees.
high-grade + fever
A high-grade infection spread through the hospital ward before staff could isolate the patients.
Ritu's mother was diagnosed with a high-grade lymphoma during her routine check-up last spring.
- aggressive
common in cancer reports; emphasises rapid growth
- severe
broader; works outside medicine too
- advanced
often refers to the stage rather than the biological grade
- low-grade
milder form of the same condition, slower-growing
文法句型
high-grade + medical noun
用法筆記
Restricted to medical reports and clinical speech; distinguishes a more aggressive form of a condition from its 'low-grade' counterpart. Distinguish from sense 1: this sense never describes manufactured goods.