above definition

English

Alternative forms

• aboue (obsolete)

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.

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) enPR: ə-bŭvʹ IPA^(key): /əˈbʌv/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /əˈbʌv/

• Audio (GA)

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ʌv

Preposition

above

1. Physically over; on top of; worn on top of, said of clothing. [first attested before 1150.]

   He always put his coat on above his sweater.

2. In or to a higher place; higher than; on or over the upper surface. [first attested before 1150]

   Antonyms: below, beneath

   • 1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], OCLC 964384981, Genesis 1:20:

     And God said, Let the waters bring foorth aboundantly the moving creature that hath life, and foule that may flie above the earth in the open firmament of heauen.

   • 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 222716698:

     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.

   • 2013 May-June, William E. Conner, “An Acoustic Arms Race”, in American Scientist, volume 101, number 3, page 206-7:

     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.

3. Farther north than. [first attested before 1150]

   Idaho is above Utah.

4. Rising; appearing out of reach height-wise. [first attested around 1150–1350]
5. (figuratively) 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. [first attested around 1150–1350]

   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.

   to cut above average

   • 1594, Christopher Marlowe, Edward II, Act I, scene i:

     Thy worth, sweet friend, is far above my gifts,

   • 1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], OCLC 964384981, Acts 26:13:

     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.

6. Higher in rank, status, or position. [first attested around 1150–1350]

   to stand head and shoulders above the rest

   • 1791, John Walker, A Critical Pronouncing Dictionary […] ‎^[1], London: Sold by G. G. J. and J. Robinſon, Paternoſter Row; and T. Cadell, in the Strand, OCLC 37805775, page 557:

     ☞ This word [wrap] is often pronounced wrop, rhyming with top, even by ſpeakers much above the vulgar.

7. (Scotland) In addition to; besides. [first attested around 1150–1350]

   above and beyond the call of duty

   over and above

8. Surpassing in number or quantity; more than. [first attested around 1350–1470]

   That amount is way above our asking price.

9. In preference to.
10. Too proud to stoop to; averse to; disinclined towards;

    The owner was above taking more than a token salary.

11. Beyond; on the other side.
12. (theater) Upstage of.

Usage notes

• (surpassing in number or quantity): passing into the adverbial sense.

Derived terms

Translations

Adverb

above (not comparable)

1. Directly overhead; vertically on top of. [first attested before 1150.]
   • 2013 May 11, “The climate of Tibet: Pole-land”, in The Economist‎^[2], volume 407, number 8835, page 80:

     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.

2. Higher in the same page; earlier in the order as far as writing products go. [first attested before 1150.]
   • 1913, Ambrose Bierce, Present at a Hanging and Other Ghost Stories:

     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

   • 1905, Emanuel Swedenborg, chapter 19, in Heaven and Hell:

     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).

3. Into or from heaven; in the sky. [first attested around 1150–1350]

   He's in a better place now, floating free as the clouds above.

4. In a higher place; upstairs; farther upstream. [first attested around 1150–1350]
5. Higher in rank, power, or position. [first attested around 1150–1350]

   He appealed to the court above.

6. (archaic) In addition. [first attested around 1150–1350]
7. More in number. [first attested around 1350–1470]
8. Above zero; above freezing. [first attested in the mid 20^th century.]

   It was a cold day at only 5 above.

9. (biology) On the upper half or the dorsal surface of an animal.

   The sparrow I saw was rufous above and off-white below.

Derived terms

Translations

Adjective

above (not comparable)

1. Of heaven; heavenly. [first attested around (1150 to 1350).]
2. (by ellipsis) Being located higher on the same page or on a preceding page. [first attested in the mid 18^th century.]

Usage notes

• Above is often used elliptically as an adjective by omitting the word said, mentioned, quoted, or the like:
  • the above(-said) observations
  • the above(-cited) reference
  • the above(-quoted) articles

Translations

Noun

above (uncountable)

1. Heaven. [first attested around 1150–1350]
2. Something, especially a person's name in legal documents, that appears higher on the same page or on a preceding page.
3. Higher authority.
4. (archaic) betterment, raised status or condition.
   • 1896, William Morris, The Well at the World's End:

     Withal they saw of him that he had no doubt but that they should come to their above on the morrow,

Usage notes

The preposition above is often used further elliptically as a noun by omitting the associated noun, where it is should be clear what is omitted: e.g. See the above.

Related terms

• abovesaid
• aboves'd

Translations

See also

• Category:English phrasal verbs with particle (above)

References

• Andrea Tyler and Vyvyan Evans, "The vertical axis", in The Semantics of English Prepositions: Spatial Scenes, Embodied Meaning and Cognition, Cambridge University Press, 2003, 0-521-81430 8
• Laurence Urdang (editor), The Random House College Dictionary (Random House, 1984 [1975], →ISBN), page 4
• Elliott K. Dobbie, C. William Dunmore, Robert K. Barnhart, et al. (editors), Chambers Dictionary of Etymology (Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, 2004 [1998], →ISBN), page 4
• above in The Century Dictionary, New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911.
• above at OneLook Dictionary Search.
• “above, prep.” in the Dictionary of the Scots Language, Edinburgh: Scottish Language Dictionaries.