high-grade
Americanadjective
-
of excellent or superior quality.
-
(of ore) yielding a relatively large amount of the metal for which it is mined.
verb (used with object)
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of high-grade
First recorded in 1875–80
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
That compares with a high-grade corporate spread of about 80 basis points for the ICE BofA US Corporate Index, up from about 73 basis points in June.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 27, 2026
This comes as the rest of the high-grade corporate bond market has held up better.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 27, 2026
“By successfully restructuring an onerous 100% silver royalty that had hamstrung the project for 20 years, Polymetals has unlocked the economic value of its high-grade silver ore,” analyst Peter Kormendy says.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 28, 2026
“You need to spread the field as far as you can,” said Maureen O’Connor, global head of high-grade debt syndicate at Wells Fargo.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 19, 2026
The Esperanza Mine, in Mexico, is called a high-grade gold mine.
From The Business of Mining A brief non-technical exposition of the principles involved in the profitable operation of mines by Hoskin, Arthur J.
Jake sees it plain enough, that the lad thinks he's been high-graded, so he calls over our waiter and crowds all five watches onto him.
From Somewhere in Red Gap by Wilson, Harry Leon
Could it possibly be high-graded, in spite of all the testimony to the contrary?
From Wunpost by Coolidge, Dane
Some high-grading for jumbos; largest 17" cutthroat and 18" rainbow.
From Seattle Times ● Apr. 26, 2010
"No—I 'll give you my word I have n't been high-grading," he said at last.
From The Cross-Cut by Cooper, Courtney Ryley
He had to be shown that high-grading was costing him the very thing he was trying to find.
From The Great Gray Plague by Jones, Raymond F.
He used to smoke his pipe and watch the little woman and Babe go "high-grading" along the tunnel wall.
From Casey Ryan by Bower, B. M.
"You're high-grading and you should be using a flotation process."
From The Great Gray Plague by Jones, Raymond F.
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
