Definition of "high-hat" [high-hat]

• To treat in a condescending or supercilious manner. (verb-transitive)
• Snobbish; haughty. (adjective)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "Leyda praised the wit and artistry of Alberto Cavalcanti's "Yellow Caesar" 1941, a satire mocking Mussolini, writing: "Maximum advantage is taken of a casual spitting or clearing of the throat, caught by Cavalcanti in his careful combing of British newsreel archives, or of the variety of costume Mussolini enjoyed—from diplomatic high-hat to a momentary affectation of peasant garb for the treacherous camera's sake.""
• "So there was high-hat coming through my vocal monitor and nothing else."
• "Over the monitors, the incessant sizzle of drummer Jason Nazary's high-hat hung in the air as bassist Adam Lane entered with a strident but off-kilter rhythm that seemed to stumble over Mr. Nazary's stuttering stick-work."