high-level
/ˌhaɪ ˈlevl/ (bre, ipa) · /ˌhaɪ ˈlevl/ (ame, ipa) · /ˈhī-ˈle-vəl/ (ame, mw)
high-level — adjective
1. involving people who hold important positions in a government, organization, or
involving people who hold important positions in a government, organization, or company, such as ministers, ambassadors, or senior executives.
Nala flew to Geneva for high-level talks with the African Union envoy.
collocation: high-level talks / meetings / negotiations
A high-level meeting between the two foreign ministers was held in Tokyo on Sunday.
attributive: high-level + noun (meeting / talks / committee)
Esteban resigned from the company after a high-level investigation into the missing funds.
The President sent a high-level delegation to attend the peace conference in Oslo.
Yuki was promoted to a high-level position in the Ministry of Finance last month.
- senior
describes the people directly; high-level describes the meeting or position involving them
- top-level
very close in meaning; slightly more emphatic about being at the very top
- high-ranking
describes individual officials rather than meetings or decisions
- low-level
involving junior staff or routine workers rather than senior officials
文法句型
high-level + meeting / talks / discussions / official
用法筆記
Almost always attributive (placed before a noun). Subject nouns are typically meetings, talks, officials, sources, or decisions — not everyday objects or activities.
常見錯誤
2. at a great height above the ground, the floor, or the sea, especially when descr
at a great height above the ground, the floor, or the sea, especially when describing clouds, winds, or things placed up high.
Thin high-level clouds drifted across the sky above the mountain ridge.
collocation: high-level clouds / winds
Gabriel kept the medicine on a high-level shelf so the children could not reach it.
everyday use: placed up high, out of reach
Pilots avoided the area because of strong high-level winds above the storm.
The library stored old maps on a high-level rack near the ceiling.
- low-level
close to the ground or the floor
文法句型
high-level + clouds / wind / flight / shelf
用法筆記
Distinguish from sense 1: this sense is physical (height above the ground), while sense 1 is metaphorical (high rank or importance). Typical nouns here are clouds, winds, shelves, or racks — not meetings or officials.
3. describing a programming language whose statements resemble ordinary English, so
describing a programming language whose statements resemble ordinary English, so people can read and write code without dealing with the raw instructions a processor actually executes.
Python and Java are high-level languages widely taught in beginner programming courses.
collocation: high-level language / programming
Dewi prefers to write her data analysis scripts in a high-level language like R.
typical context: writing code in a high-level language
Most modern web applications are built using a high-level programming language.
Aarav switched from assembly to a high-level language to finish the project faster.
- low-level
closer to machine code; harder for humans to read but faster for the computer to execute
文法句型
high-level + language / programming / code
用法筆記
Almost always paired with 'language', 'programming language', or 'code'. Contrasted with 'low-level' (assembly or machine code), which is closer to what the processor directly executes.