record high

Meanings

1. 1nouncountable

   The highest level a figure, price or measurement has ever reached since records began.

   Grammar: Takes an or the: a record high, or plural record highs.

   Patterns

   • a record high of something
   • reach a record high

   Home prices hit a record high this spring.

   Temperatures in the city reached a record high of 41 degrees.

   Stocks closed at a record high after the surprise announcement.

2. 2adjectivebefore a noun

   Higher than any amount previously recorded.

   Grammar: Appears before a noun: record high temperatures.

   Patterns

   • record high something

   Shoppers faced record high food prices last year.

   The airport handled record high passenger numbers in August.

   Record high tides flooded the harbor road.

Word forms

Common combinations

hit a record high

Gold hit a record high today.

reach a record high

Sales reached a record high in December.

at a record high

Unemployment is at a record high in the region.

set a record high

The team set a record high for ticket sales.

all-time record high

The index closed at an all-time record high.

Synonyms and how they differ

all-time high

This is nearly identical but is especially common in financial reporting.

peak

This can refer to any top point, not necessarily one never reached before.

high point

This is general and can be a best moment, unlike a measured record high.

record level

This is less specific because it can be a high or low figure.

Opposites

Word family

record noun

the best result ever measured

high noun

a peak level

record-breaking adjective

better than any before

record low noun

the lowest ever level

Commonly confused: record high or record-high?

Practice

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Write a sentence using “record high”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

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