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Meaning of the terms low beam and high beam headlightsThe terms relate to the angle of the center line of the light beams in relation to the horizontal.

For safe driving at night, the farther down the road one can see, the safer driving is. So, they put high beams [beam center line about horizontal / parallel to the road surface] on vehicles to all seeing farther down the road. BUT...

Because high beams will blind an oncoming driver, and thus make for a very unsafe condition, they also put low beam lights, which allow a driver to "dip" / lower the angle of his lights so as not to "blind" the driver of an approaching vehicle.

The high intensity zone of the low beam headlights is offset downward and rightward between 1/2° and 3° relative to straight-ahead (in a country where traffic flows on the left side of the road, low beams are offset downward and leftward). This means seeing distance on low beam is geometrically limited, for the offset means the top of the beam strikes the roadway and/or the high-intensity zone intersects the edge of the road at a certain distance from the car. Not only is it very impolite to not "dim" or dip your hi-beams for the driver of an oncoming vehicle, it is very dangerous for all concerned.

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Q: What is the difference between low beam and high beam headlights?
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