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Length, when referring to measurement in one dimension (as in the length of a line segment or a or a piece of string), has a specialized meaning. So does height when it is used in conjunction with base.
Both in theory and in reality, waves are never created in one uniform height. Waves fall into a systemic pattern of varying size. Therefore, in order to classify wave height we determine the significant wave height, which is the average of the highest 1/3 of the waves in a system. This is how weather reports will specify wave height.