Haut/Haute et Bas/Basse

Question

What about haut/haute (high) and bas/basse (low) ? Do they come before a noun or after?

Céline Pickard · Accepted Answer

Bonjour Aashpreet,
Thank you for your question! It is true that "haut-haute / bas-basse" can come before or after the noun so they've been removed from this lesson.
Usually, when they are after the noun, "haut-haute / bas-basse" take an "objective" meaning (aka, their literal meaning) whereas when "haut-haute / bas-basse" are before the noun, they mean something figurative:

un bâtiment haut = a tall building
une table basse = a coffee table (low)
un haut fonctionnaire = a senior official / a senior civil servant
une basse vengeance = a petty revenge

I hope this is helpful.
Bonne journée !