Höhere

höhere is a German attributive adjective form related to hoch, meaning high or higher. It is used to describe a feminine singular noun and corresponds to the feminine singular form in the nominative and accusative cases when the adjective appears before the noun with a determiner such as die or eine. In phrases like die höhere Schule or eine höhere Geschwindigkeit, higher degrees are expressed by this form.

In German grammar, adjectives change endings according to case, gender, number, and the presence or type of determiner. For feminine singular nouns in the nominative or accusative case, the attributive form commonly seen is höhere, especially after a definite article die or an indefinite article eine. Without a determiner, the strong declension can yield different endings, and the exact form depends on the specific syntactic context. The word höhe itself forms the base meaning “high,” while höhere specifically marks the feminine singular attributive position in many common constructions.

Common usages illustrate its meaning as “higher” or “greater.” Examples include die höhere Schule (the higher school, a secondary education institution in some contexts) and eine höhere Geschwindigkeit (a higher speed). The term is productive in comparative and descriptive phrases, referring to a greater degree of a quality such as height, level, or intensity.

Etymology traces hohe to the Germanic root for high, with the umlaut and the ending -e signaling feminine singular agreement in the attributive position. The form höher– serves as the comparative stem, but höhere is the inflected form used before feminine nouns in standard word order.

See also: hoch, Höhere Schule, Geschwindigkeit, German adjectives, German grammar.