Signbank

1. The distance from the bottom to the top of a thing or person, expressed as a measurement. English = height.

2. The distance from the ground to the location of something in the air, like a plane. English = height.

1. To be a long way above the ground, a person or sea level. English = (be) high.

1. Originally, these two signs were only used in Signed English in education. It seems that over the past forty years they have started to be used more widely in the deaf community, especially by younger deaf people exposed to them in school. The main sign shown here is used in Signed English for ‘high’ and the variant is used for ‘height’. In education (mathematics, geometry, etc.) these signs are used by some teachers in this way. If you search for ‘high’ or ‘height’ in this dictionary you will see there are several other common signs that also have these meanings when used in appropriate contexts.