high-steppern.
/ˌhʌɪˈstɛpə/, U.S. /ˈhaɪˌstɛpər/ 1. A horse which lifts its feet high from the ground in walking and trotting. Occasionally also: a person who takes high steps; spec. a dancer.
ΘΚΠ
the world > movement > progressive motion > walking > [noun] > manner of walking > stately or affected > one who
stalker1585
high-stepper1819
the world > animals > mammals > group Ungulata (hoofed) > family Equidae (general equines) > horse defined by speed or gait > [noun] > stride > length of stride > horse with good or high steps
high-stepper1819
stepper1835
1819 Times 7 July 1/5 (advt.) 2 Pairs of active short-legged Carriage Horses, compactly made, with quick action, are high steppers, and go well together.
1886 ‘M. Gray’ Silence of Dean Maitland I. i. 10 Sending the high-stepper flying along the level down-road like the wind.
1899 Jrnl. Amer. Med. Assoc. 33 894/1 The high-stepper with locomotor ataxia is never a child; but the drunken reel or uncertain walk of cerebellar diseases may be seen in childhood.
1914 Country Life in Amer. Dec. 83/1 Every year some outstanding highstepper appears and without difficulty wins the blue and championship ribbons.
1983 Texas Monthly Oct. 50/2 Experienced high-steppers and eager novices mingle enthusiastically, especially on Sundays, when free dance lessons are available.
2011 J. Wingfield Homecoming of Samuel Lake x. 79 He could get a horse to do damn near anything. You wanted it to be a high stepper? He could turn it into a high stepper, all right.
2. An (ostentatiously) fashionable or attractive person, esp. a young woman of this kind. Also (chiefly U.S.): a person who is or aspires to be wealthy or successful; a high-flyer; a social climber.Originally with direct reference to the high-stepping action of a horse, considered as a desirable trait.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > attention and judgement > attractiveness > [noun] > attractive person
knocker1612
attractor1641
gracioso1653
attracter1654
charmer1677
irresistible1774
fascinator1836
stunner1847
high-stepper1852
looker1893
bonzer1897
hot tamale1897
tanger1914
dish1929
head-turner1935
cake1941
the mind > attention and judgement > fashionableness > [noun] > following of fashion > follower of fashion
fashion-monger1598
fashionist?1624
à la mode1651
modist1662
high-stepper1852
hipcat1937
stilyaga1955
swinger1965
trendy1968
voguie1973
trendoid1985
hipster1989
1852 Lost Inheritance I. iii. 50 This group of men at the door, who were discussing the relative merits of the young ladies in not very elegant terms; one being denominated as a high stepper with good action.
1860 ‘F. G. Trafford’ Too much Alone III. vi. 104 [The beauty] which makes a woman be called, when young and in good action, ‘showy’ and a ‘high stepper’.
1883 Harper's Mag. Oct. 717/2 We are to esteem him too something of a high-stepper and flyer, and as likely to run his factory, his newspaper or railroad, or whatever it may be, a little better than other people.
1904 ‘O. Henry’ Cabbages & Kings xvii. 299 She was one of the genuine high-steppers. You could tell by the way her clothes fit and the style she had that Fifth Avenue was made for her.
1935 G. Blake Shipbuilders ii. 38 A high-stepper, that one,..with her semi-detached villa in Newlands and her Austin Twelve and her made-up face.
1957 J. McLiam Sin of Pat Muldoon ii. i. 39 A..boffo flick with Marilyn Monroe or any of these high-steppers.
2000 S. Bellow Ravelstein 23 For long years he had been a tourist or midlevel worshipper of French civilization..wanting to be a high-stepper, but broke.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, September 2014; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
<
n.1819