highlands

/ˈhaɪ.ləndz/ (bre, ipa) · [hˈaɪləndz] /ˈhaɪ.ləndz/ (ame, ipa)

highlands — noun

1. the higher, hilly, or mountain-covered parts of a country or region, often with

1.名詞B2
釋義

the higher, hilly, or mountain-covered parts of a country or region, often with thin soil, small farms, and few large towns.

例句

Roya grew up in the highlands of Ethiopia, where coffee plants covered the hillsides.

the highlands of [country] — naming a country's mountain region

Sheep farming is still the main way people earn a living in the highlands.

bare 'in the highlands' — generic mountain-region reference

同義詞
  • uplands

    near-synonym; slightly more technical and used in geography writing

  • hill country

    informal; suggests rolling hills more than tall mountains

  • moorlands

    narrower; emphasises open, treeless land covered in grass or heather

反義詞
  • lowlands

    the flat, low-lying parts of the same country or region

文法句型

the highlands of [country/region]

用法筆記

Almost always plural and usually preceded by 'the'. Subject is typically a region, a country, or a named geographical island; the noun groups the whole mountain area as one place rather than counting separate hills.

常見錯誤

❌I visited a highland last summer.
✅I visited the highlands last summer.
💡the word is used as a plural for the whole region, not a single hill.
❌Ethiopia has many highlands.
✅Ethiopia has a large area of highlands.
💡you describe one continuous region, not several countable units.

2. the mountain-covered northern part of Scotland, known for its lochs, small Gaeli

2.名詞B2
釋義

the mountain-covered northern part of Scotland, known for its lochs, small Gaelic-speaking villages, and its long history as a separate cultural area; usually written with a capital H and always with 'the'.

例句

Asher and Indra spent two weeks walking through the Highlands last August.

capitalised 'the Highlands' — proper-noun reference to northern Scotland

The Highlands are famous for their misty lochs and old stone castles.

plural verb agreement: 'the Highlands are'

同義詞
反義詞
  • the Lowlands

    the southern, flatter part of Scotland; the Lowlands include Edinburgh and Glasgow

文法句型

the Highlands

用法筆記

Distinguish from sense 1: this sense is a proper noun for a specific Scottish region (north of the Forth-Clyde line) and is normally capitalised. Verb agreement is plural ('the Highlands are…'), and it almost never takes a country-name modifier — 'the Scottish Highlands' is the longer form, never 'the highlands of Scotland' for this proper-noun meaning.

常見錯誤

❌I went to Highlands.
✅I went to the Highlands.
💡the definite article is required for this place-name.
❌The Highlands is a beautiful place.
✅The Highlands are a beautiful place.
💡plural form takes a plural verb.