above
Part of speech: prep
adv
adj
noun
Morphological type: simple
Topics: biology
entertainment
lifestyle
natural-sciences
theater
Etymology: Etymology tree
Proto-Indo-European *ud-s-?
Proto-Indo-European *h₂u-s-?
Proto-Germanic *uz-
Proto-West Germanic *uʀ-
Old English ar-
Old English ā-
Proto-West Germanic *bi-
Proto-Indo-European *upó
Proto-Germanic *ub
Proto-Germanic *-anē
Proto-Germanic *ubanē
Proto-West Germanic *obanā
Proto-West Germanic *biobanā
Old English bufan
Old English abūfan
Middle English aboven
English above
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, the adjective, and the noun derive from the adverb.
Inflected forms:
form: aboue
pos: prep
tags: alternative
obsolete
form: aboue
pos: adv
tags: alternative
obsolete
form: aboue
pos: adj
tags: alternative
obsolete
form: aboue
pos: noun
tags: alternative
obsolete
Senses:
gloss: Physically over; on top of; worn on top of, said of clothing.
pos: prep
examples: He always put his coat on above his sweater.
gloss: In or to a higher place; higher than; on or over the upper surface.
pos: prep
examples: 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.
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.
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.
gloss: Farther north than.
pos: prep
examples: Idaho is above Utah.
gloss: Rising; appearing out of reach height-wise.
pos: prep
gloss: 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.
pos: prep
tags: figuratively
examples: to cut above average
Even the chief of police is not above suspicion.
He was always above reproach.
I thought you said you were above these kinds of antics.
That's above my comprehension.
Thy worth, sweet friend, is far above my gifts,
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.
gloss: Higher in rank, status, or position.
pos: prep
examples: to stand head and shoulders above the rest
☞ This word [wrap] is often pronounced wrop, rhyming with top, even by ſpeakers much above the vulgar.
gloss: In addition to; besides.
pos: prep
tags: Scotland
examples: above and beyond the call of duty
over and above
gloss: Surpassing in number or quantity; more than.
pos: prep
examples: That amount is way above our asking price.
gloss: In preference to.
pos: prep
gloss: Too proud to stoop to; averse to; disinclined towards;
pos: prep
examples: The owner was above taking more than a token salary.
gloss: Beyond; on the other side.
pos: prep
gloss: Upstage of.
pos: prep
gloss: Directly overhead; vertically on top of.
pos: adv
tags: not-comparable
examples: Of all the transitions brought about on the Earth’s surface by temperature change, the melting of ice into water is the starkest. It is binary. And for the land beneath, the air above and the life around, it changes everything.
gloss: Higher in the same page; earlier in the order as far as writing products go.
pos: adv
tags: not-comparable
examples: Nobody has lived in it since the summer of 1879, and it is fast going to pieces. For some three years before the date mentioned above, it was occupied by the family of Charles May
That angels are men in the most complete form, and enjoy every sense, may be seen above (n. 73-77); and that the light in heaven is far brighter than the light in the world (n. 126-132).
gloss: Into or from heaven; in the sky.
pos: adv
tags: not-comparable
examples: He’s in a better place now, floating free as the clouds above.
gloss: In a higher place; upstairs; farther upstream.
pos: adv
tags: not-comparable
gloss: Higher in rank, power, or position.
pos: adv
tags: not-comparable
examples: He appealed to the court above.
gloss: In addition.
pos: adv
tags: archaic
not-comparable
gloss: More in number.
pos: adv
tags: not-comparable
gloss: Above zero; above freezing.
pos: adv
tags: not-comparable
examples: It was a cold day at only 5 above.
gloss: On the upper half or the dorsal surface of an animal.
pos: adv
tags: not-comparable
examples: The sparrow I saw was rufous above and off-white below.
gloss: Of heaven; heavenly.
pos: adj
tags: not-comparable
gloss: Being located higher on the same page or on a preceding page.
pos: adj
tags: not-comparable
gloss: Heaven.
pos: noun
tags: uncountable
examples: A brother from another mother, sent from the above.
gloss: Something, especially a person's name in legal documents, that appears higher on the same page or on a preceding page.
pos: noun
tags: uncountable
gloss: Higher authority.
pos: noun
tags: uncountable
gloss: betterment, raised status or condition.
pos: noun
tags: archaic
uncountable
examples: Withal they saw of him that he had no doubt but that they should come to their above on the morrow,
Related words: abovesaid
aboves'd
Derived words: above-cited
above-described
above-given
above-mentioned
above-named
above-quoted
above-said
above-specified
above-written
Translations:
lang: Finnish
word: ylle
lang: Spanish
word: fuera de alcance
lang: Tamil
word: மேலே
roman: mēlē
lang: Arabic
word: أَكْثٰر
roman: ʔakṯār
lang: Bulgarian
word: освен това
roman: osven tova
lang: Bulgarian
word: още повече
roman: ošte poveče
lang: Dutch
word: over
lang: Dutch
word: meer dan
lang: Finnish
word: yli
lang: French
word: plus de
lang: German
word: über
lang: Hebrew
word: מעל
lang: Northern Kurdish
word: zêdeyî
lang: Latin
word: super
lang: Latin
word: suprā
lang: Marathi
word: आणखी
roman: āṇkhī
lang: Norwegian
word: over
lang: Polish
word: ponad
lang: Portuguese
word: acima de
lang: Portuguese
word: mais que
lang: Portuguese
word: mais de
lang: Russian
word: свы́ше
roman: svýše
lang: Scots
word: abune
lang: Scots
word: aboon
lang: Slovak
word: nad
lang: Slovak
word: za
lang: Slovene
word: nad
lang: Spanish
word: sobre
lang: Tamil
word: மேலே
roman: mēlē
lang: Turkish
word: daha
lang: Walloon
word: pus ki
lang: Walloon
word: dipus ki