Høye

Høye is a Norwegian adjective meaning high or tall. It is used to describe height, elevation, or figurative intensity, and it inflects for number and definiteness in Bokmål and Nynorsk. In addition to describing objects, it appears in expressions about prices, expectations, and other qualities.

Grammatical forms and examples:

- Indefinite singular masculine/feminine: en høy mann

- Indefinite singular neuter: et høyt hus

- Indefinite plural: høye menn, høye hus

- Definite singular masculine: den høye mannen

- Definite singular neuter: det høye huset

- Definite plural: de høye husene

Etymology and cognates:

Høye derives from Old Norse hárr meaning tall or high. It has cognates in other Scandinavian languages, including Danish høj and Swedish hög, which share the same origin and meaning.

Usage notes:

The word is common in geographical and architectural descriptions, for example høye fjell (tall mountains) or høye bygninger (tall buildings). It also appears in everyday phrases such as høye priser (high prices) or høye forventninger (high expectations). The adverbial form is høyt, used to modify verbs or adjectives, as in snakket høyt (spoke loudly).

Surname and place-name use:

In Norwegian, høye can occur as part of place names or as a surname. As with many adjectives used as surnames, capitalization and orthography may vary in historical records.

See also:

Norwegian grammar of adjectives; comparative forms of høy; related Scandinavian terms such as høj (Danish) and hög (Swedish).