This paper addresses the problem of global finite-time adaptive stabilization for a class of high order uncertain nonlinear systems. A new finite-time stability result is established to provide a less conservative estimation of convergent time in uncertain situation, and a state feedback stabilizer with an adaptive mechanism is constructed by applying continuous domination to adaptive fashion of the systems to be considered. The main novelty of this paper is the skillful development of an analytic strategy and the delicate selection of Lyapunov functions in searching for the adaptive fast finite-time stabilizer. A benchmark example is given to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed strategy. (C) 2019 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.