高こう踏とう

こ

う

と

う

Meanings

Describes a person, attitude, or artistic stance that is intellectually elevated, detached from worldly concerns, or disdainful of popular taste. Often used in literary or critical contexts.

彼かれの高こう踏とうな態たい度どは、時ときに周しゅう囲いから誤ご解かいされる。
His aloof attitude is sometimes misunderstood by those around him.
この作さっ家かの作さく品ひんには高こう踏とう的てきな美び意い識しきが感かんじられる。
One can sense a transcendent aesthetic in this author's works.

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Kanji

高tall, high, expensive
踏step, trample, carry through

Related words

高こう尚しょう
高尚 means 'lofty' or 'noble' in a moral or intellectual sense, while 高踏 emphasizes detachment from the mundane and a disdain for popular taste.
孤こ高こう
孤高 suggests proud solitude and independence, often with a positive nuance of integrity, whereas 高踏 can imply a more critical or dismissive aloofness.

Word family

高こう踏とう派は
Parnassians; transcendentalists
高こう踏とう的てき
highbrow; transcendental; aloof from worldly affairs
高こう踏とう主しゅ義ぎ
transcendentalism (literary style); Parnassianism

Written forms

高こう踏とうUsage44%
Standard kanji form; no common kana-only variant.
こうとうUsage56%

Etymology

Compound of 高 (high) and 踏 (step, tread), suggesting 'stepping high' or 'rising above'. The exact historical derivation is uncertain; the term is used in modern Japanese to describe an elevated, detached stance.