above
Language: English
Part of speech: prep
Pronunciation: enpr: ə-bŭvʹ
ipa: /əˈbʌv/
ipa: /əˈbʌv/
rhymes: -ʌv
Forms: form: aboue
Etymology: From Middle English above, aboven, abuven, from Old English ābufan, onbufan, from on (“on”) + bufan (“over”), (akin to Icelandic ofan (“from above”), Middle Dutch bōven, Old Frisian bova, Middle High German bobene) from bī (“by”) + ufan (“over”); also cognate with Danish oven, Dutch boven, German oben, Swedish ovan, Old Saxon oƀan, Old High German obana.
The preposition, adjective and the noun derive from the adverb.
Senses: examples: text: He always put his coat on above his sweater.
glosses: Physically over; on top of; worn on top of, said of clothing.
examples: text: And God said, Let the waters bring foorth aboundantly the mouing creature that hath life, and foule that may flie aboue the earth in the open firmament of heauen.
ref: 1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Genesis 1:20:
text: Then came a maid with hand-bag and shawls, and after her a tall young lady. She stood for a moment holding her skirt above the grimy steps, […] and the light of the reflector fell full upon her.
ref: 1897 December (indicated as 1898), Winston Churchill, chapter V, in The Celebrity: An Episode, New York, N.Y.: The Macmillan Company; London: Macmillan & Co., Ltd., →OCLC:
text: Earless ghost swift moths become “invisible” to echolocating bats by forming mating clusters close (less than half a meter) above vegetation and effectively blending into the clutter of echoes that the bat receives from the leaves and stems around them.
ref: 2013 May-June, William E. Conner, “An Acoustic Arms Race”, in American Scientist, volume 101, number 3, pages 206–7:
antonyms: below
beneath
glosses: In or to a higher place; higher than; on or over the upper surface.
examples: text: Idaho is above Utah.
glosses: Farther north than.
glosses: Rising; appearing out of reach height-wise.
examples: text: to cut above average
text: Even the chief of police is not above suspicion.
text: He was always above reproach.
text: I thought you said you were above these kinds of antics.
text: That's above my comprehension.
text: Thy worth, sweet friend, is far above my gifts,
ref: 1594, Christopher Marlowe, Edward II, act I, scene i:
text: At midday, O king, I saw in the way a light from heaven, above the brightnes of the Sunne, shining round about mee, and them which iourneyed with me.
ref: 1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Acts 26:13:
glosses: Higher than; superior to in any respect; surpassing; higher in measure, degree, volume, or pitch, etc. than; out of reach; not exposed to; not likely to be affected by; incapable of negative actions or thoughts.
examples: text: to stand head and shoulders above the rest
text: ☞ This word [wrap] is often pronounced wrop, rhyming with top, even by ſpeakers much above the vulgar.
ref: 1791, John Walker, A Critical Pronouncing Dictionary […] , London: Sold by G. G. J. and J. Robinſon, Paternoſter Row; and T. Cadell, in the Strand, →OCLC, page 557:
glosses: Higher in rank, status, or position.
examples: text: above and beyond the call of duty
text: over and above
glosses: In addition to; besides.
examples: text: That amount is way above our asking price.
glosses: Surpassing in number or quantity; more than.
glosses: In preference to.
examples: text: The owner was above taking more than a token salary.
glosses: Too proud to stoop to; averse to; disinclined towards;
glosses: Beyond; on the other side.
topics: entertainment
lifestyle
theater
glosses: Upstage of.
Derived terms: sense: Terms derived from the preposition
word: above a bit
sense: Terms derived from the preposition
word: above all
sense: Terms derived from the preposition
word: above and beyond
sense: Terms derived from the preposition
word: above average
sense: Terms derived from the preposition
word: above board
sense: Terms derived from the preposition
word: above-board
sense: Terms derived from the preposition
word: abovedeck
sense: Terms derived from the preposition
word: Above Derwent
sense: Terms derived from the preposition
word: abovedescribed
sense: Terms derived from the preposition
word: above grass
sense: Terms derived from the preposition
word: aboveground
sense: Terms derived from the preposition
word: above-ground
sense: Terms derived from the preposition
word: above ground
sense: Terms derived from the preposition
word: above-line
sense: Terms derived from the preposition
word: abovelisted
sense: Terms derived from the preposition
word: above measure
sense: Terms derived from the preposition
word: abovementioned
sense: Terms derived from the preposition
word: aboveness
sense: Terms derived from the preposition
word: above one's bend
sense: Terms derived from the preposition
word: above oneself
sense: Terms derived from the preposition
word: above one's huckleberry
sense: Terms derived from the preposition
word: above one's pay grade
sense: Terms derived from the preposition
word: above one's paygrade
sense: Terms derived from the preposition
word: above one's station
sense: Terms derived from the preposition
word: above par
sense: Terms derived from the preposition
word: above proof
sense: Terms derived from the preposition
word: above-stairs
sense: Terms derived from the preposition
word: above stairs
sense: Terms derived from the preposition
word: abovestairs
sense: Terms derived from the preposition
word: abovestated
sense: Terms derived from the preposition
word: above the curve
sense: Terms derived from the preposition
word: above-the-fold
sense: Terms derived from the preposition
word: above the fold
sense: Terms derived from the preposition
word: above the fray
sense: Terms derived from the preposition
word: above the law
sense: Terms derived from the preposition
word: above the line
sense: Terms derived from the preposition
word: above the rim
sense: Terms derived from the preposition
word: above the salt
sense: Terms derived from the preposition
word: above the table
sense: Terms derived from the preposition
word: above-water
sense: Terms derived from the preposition
word: above water
sense: Terms derived from the preposition
word: a notch above
sense: Terms derived from the preposition
word: brood above
sense: Terms derived from the preposition
word: Caesar's wife must be above suspicion
sense: Terms derived from the preposition
word: cut above
sense: Terms derived from the preposition
word: don't get above your raising
sense: Terms derived from the preposition
word: get above oneself
sense: Terms derived from the preposition
word: gift from above
sense: Terms derived from the preposition
word: heavens above
sense: Terms derived from the preposition
word: height above average terrain
sense: Terms derived from the preposition
word: hell from above
sense: Terms derived from the preposition
word: hereabove
sense: Terms derived from the preposition
word: hereinabove
sense: Terms derived from the preposition
word: hit above one's weight
sense: Terms derived from the preposition
word: hold one's head above water
sense: Terms derived from the preposition
word: hook above
sense: Terms derived from the preposition
word: huckleberry above a persimmon
sense: Terms derived from the preposition
word: huckleberry above one's persimmon
sense: Terms derived from the preposition
word: keep one's head above the water
sense: Terms derived from the preposition
word: keep one's head above water
sense: Terms derived from the preposition
word: lie above
sense: Terms derived from the preposition
word: over and above
sense: Terms derived from the preposition
word: punch above
sense: Terms derived from the preposition
word: punch above one's weight
sense: Terms derived from the preposition
word: put one's head above the parapet
sense: Terms derived from the preposition
word: rise above
sense: Terms derived from the preposition
word: thereabove
sense: Terms derived from the preposition
word: thereinabove
sense: Terms derived from the preposition
word: up above
sense: Terms derived from the preposition
word: whereabove