HOW TO USE THE DICTIONARY
To look up an entry in The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, use the search window above. For best results, after typing in the word, click on the “Search” button instead of using the “enter” key.
Some compound words (like bus rapid transit, dog whistle, or identity theft) don’t appear on the drop-down list when you type them in the search bar. For best results with compound words, place a quotation mark before the compound word in the search window.
THE USAGE PANEL
The Usage Panel is a group of nearly 200 prominent scholars, creative writers, journalists, diplomats, and others in occupations requiring mastery of language. Annual surveys have gauged the acceptability of particular usages and grammatical constructions.
AMERICAN HERITAGE DICTIONARY APP
The new American Heritage Dictionary app is now available for iOS and Android.
THE AMERICAN HERITAGE DICTIONARY BLOG
The articles in our blog examine new words, revised definitions, interesting images from the fifth edition, discussions of usage, and more.
INTERESTED IN DICTIONARIES?
Check out the Dictionary Society of North America at http://www.dictionarysociety.com
n. 1. The highest point or part; the top. 2. The highest level or degree that can be attained. 3. a. The highest level, as of government officials. b. A conference or meeting of high-level leaders, usually called to shape a program of action. v. sum·mit·ed, sum·mit·ing, sum·mits v.tr. To climb to the summit of (a mountain). v.intr. To climb to the summit. [Middle English somet, from Old French sommette, diminutive of som, top, from Latin summum, from neuter of summus, highest; see uper in the Appendix of Indo-European roots.] Synonyms: summit, peak1, pinnacle, acme, apex, zenith, climax These nouns all mean the highest point. Summit denotes the highest level attainable: "His six years with the canal company marked the summit of his career as a company man" (Simon Winchester). Peak usually refers to the uppermost or most intense point: "It was the peak of summer in the Berkshires" (Saul Bellow). Pinnacle denotes a towering height, as of achievement: The articulation of the theory of relativity catapulted Einstein to the pinnacle of his profession. Acme refers to an ultimate point, as of perfection: The artist's talents were at their acme when this work was created. Apex is the culminating point: The movie begins with the dictator at the apex of his power. Zenith is the point of highest achievement, most complete development, or greatest power: "Chivalry was then in its zenith" (Henry Hallam). Climax refers to the point of greatest strength, effect, or intensity that marks the endpoint of an ascending process: The government's collapse was the climax of a series of constitutional crises. |
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2022 by HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved.
