highlife

noun

high·​life ˈhī-ˌlīf How to pronounce highlife (audio)
: dance music of west African origin that combines syncopated African rhythms with elements of jazz

Examples of highlife in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
The headliners are dancehall act Stonebwoy and highlife/hip-hop artist Black Sherif. — Michael O'Sullivan, Washington Post, 7 Mar. 2024 At 90, the Ghanaian highlife pioneer Ebo Taylor finds a new voice. — Sopan Deb, New York Times, 22 Jan. 2025 Afrobeats can be thought of as modern Nigerian and Ghanaian pop that employs local styles like highlife or fuji, some signature polyrhythmic drum patterns, and often other Black music like hip-hop, R&B, and dancehall. — Mankaprr Conteh, Rolling Stone, 14 Mar. 2025 Butterss’ double-bass throbs ground the music in chamber-jazz austerity; later, Bellerose shifts into slack, funky drummer mode, as Parker’s guitar takes on a muted highlife gait, then morphs into concentric ripples of distortion that psychedelicize your mind. — Dave Segal, SPIN, 15 May 2026 See All Example Sentences for highlife

Word History

First Known Use

1942, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of highlife was in 1942

Rhymes for highlife

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Browse Nearby Words

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Cite this Entry

“Highlife.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/highlife. Accessed 8 Jul. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on highlife

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about highlife

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