highball

[ hahy-bawl ]

/ ˈhaɪˌbɔl /

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See synonyms for: highball / highballed / highballing on Thesaurus.com

noun

a drink of whiskey mixed with club soda or ginger ale and served with ice in a tall glass.

Railroads.

a signal to start a train, given with the hand or with a lamp.
a signal for a train to move at full speed.

Military Slang. a hand salute.

verb (used without object)

Slang. to move at full speed.

verb (used with object)

to signal to (the engineer of a train) to proceed.

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Origin of highball

An Americanism dating back to 1880–85; high + ball¹

Words nearby highball

high and dry, high and low, high and mighty, High Arctic, high as a kite, highball, high-bandwidth digital content protection, high bar, high beam, highbinder, high blood pressure

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2021

How to use highball in a sentence

Usually made with gin or bourbon, it’s a similarly tart, bubbly highball, also made with lime and a slightly saline mineral water, also perfect for defying wretched summers.
How to make Ranch Water, the tequila-lime cocktail that keeps so many Texans cool|M. Carrie Allan|July 27, 2021|Washington Post
So it only seems fitting to break out the ice and make highballs or other cooling concoctions.
Half Full’s Last-Minute Father’s Day Drink & Food Gift Guide|Noah Rothbaum|June 17, 2021|The Daily Beast
Pursuit of happiness at our house involved a highball for Dad and an Old Fashioned for Mom.
What Did TJ Mean By “Pursuit of Happiness,” Anyway?|P. J. O’Rourke|June 8, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Having completed her quorum, and distributed her tickets, Mrs. Neff made ready to depart by attacking her highball again.
What Will People Say?|Rupert Hughes

She put out her hand to him, but he did not see it; he set off to find some one to lead him to a Scotch highball.
What Will People Say?|Rupert Hughes
Say, they had a highball or that,—all he had to do was to drop the tiniest speck from the little vial into the drink.
The Come Back|Carolyn Wells
I believe you had reached the highball incident in your recital.
The Main Chance|Meredith Nicholson
It is not particularly significant that I started the summer on Highball and ended it on Budweiser.
Tenting To-night|Mary Roberts Rinehart

British Dictionary definitions for highball

highball

/ (ˈhaɪˌbɔːl) mainly US /

noun

a long iced drink consisting of a spirit base with water, soda water, etc

(originally in railway use) a signal that the way ahead is clear and one may proceed

verb

(intr) to move at great speed

(tr) to drive (a vehicle) at great speed

Word Origin for highball

C19: (in sense 2) from the early railway signal consisting of a ball hoisted to the top of a pole

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

highball

Origin of highball

Words nearby highball

Words related to highball

How to use highball in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for highball

Word Origin for highball