lofty

Everyday

1. Very high or tall: lofty mountains. tree →
2. Very grand, noble or ambitious: lofty ideas. tree →
3. Proud and acting as if better than others: a lofty manner. tree →
4. (Australia, slang) A joking nickname for a very tall person, or sometimes for a short one. tree →

In the lessons

In stories and poems, «lofty» describes tall towers, trees and mountains, or a character with big dreams. It can also tell the reader a character is snobbish. In Australia and the UK «Lofty» is a jokey nickname. Phrases: lofty ambitions, lofty heights, lofty goals.

Examples

• The castle had lofty towers. tree →
• Eagles nest on lofty cliffs. tree →
• She has lofty dreams of becoming an astronaut. tree →
• He spoke in a lofty way, as if he knew everything. tree →
• The lofty pine trees blocked out the sun. tree →
• His nickname at school was Lofty because he was so tall. tree →
• Their lofty plans did not work in real life. tree →
• The church had a lofty ceiling. tree →
• The houses stood there, so lofty, so close! tree →

Note

Comparative: loftier, loftiest (y to i). Mostly a written, slightly old-fashioned word; in speech say «tall», «high» or «big». Related noun: loft (a room under the roof).

In Jewish tradition

God's strength is compared to the horns of the wild ox, meaning high and mighty power. The prophets use it for tall towers and also for proud people, whose "lofty eyes" show pride that God will bring low.

Interpretation. Tradition reads Isaiah as teaching that God humbles the proud and lifts the humble, and Proverbs as warning against a proud look.

Examples

• God who brought them forth out of Egypt is for them like the lofty horns of the wild-ox. (Torah NUM.23.22, JPS 1917) tree →
• And upon every lofty tower, and upon every fortified wall; (Prophets ISA.2.15, JPS 1917) tree →
• There is a generation, Oh how lofty are their eyes! and their eyelids are lifted up. (Writings PRO.30.13, JPS 1917) tree →
• And man is bowed down, and man is humbled, and the eyes of the lofty are humbled; (Prophets ISA.5.15, JPS 1917) tree →

Note

Comparative: loftier, loftiest (y to i). Mostly a written, slightly old-fashioned word; in speech say «tall», «high» or «big». Related noun: loft (a room under the roof).