adj. 1
Having a top that is far up (contrast: deep (having a bottom that is far down' ).) Having great vertical extent (usually reckoned from the bottom of the feet to the very top of the head) when standing. (For instance, somebody with a height of over 6 feet would generally be deemed tall.)
Ostriches are the tallest living birds.
adj. 2
Having a top that is far up (contrast: deep (having a bottom that is far down' ).) Having its top a long way up; having a great vertical (and often greater than horizontal) extent.
Tall trees, at least about 30m high.
adj. 3
Having a top that is far up (contrast: deep (having a bottom that is far down' ).) Smaller than grande, usually 8 ounces (~ 230 ml).
adj. 4
Hard to believe, such as a tall story or a tall tale.

Related words

Word family: tallness tally
Phrases: tall tale tall story stand tall tall thistle tall meadowrue plain tall tall bluestem tall drink
Is a kind of: long

Choose the right word

or Tall?

That is tall whose height is greatly in excess of its breadth or diameter, and whose actual height is great for an object of its kind; as, a tall tree; a tall man; tall grass.

J. C. Fernald, English Synonyms and Antonyms (1914)

Example sentences

towering The centipede climbed the towering tree trunk.
statuesque She's a tall, statuesque blonde with blue eyes.

Popularity over time

Word	1850 → 2019	Trend
tall		rising
towering		rising
statuesque		rising

Use in printed books, per decade from 1850 to 2019.

By length

3 letters: big¹
4 letters: high¹, long¹, huge¹
5 letters: large¹, lofty², lanky², leggy², rangy²
6 letters: gangly²
7 letters: eminent³, exalted³
8 letters: elevated⁴, towering³, gangling
9 letters: marvelous³
10 letters: incredible⁴, marvellous³, rhetorical⁴, improbable⁴, statuesque³
12 letters: unbelievable⁵, magniloquent
13 letters: grandiloquent⁴

The small number after each word is its number of syllables (lofty² = 2 syllables).

In other languages

Français: haut
Italiano: alto
Español: alto
Deutsch: hoch
Català: alt