upper

upper — adjective

1. found or placed in a position that is above another thing, or forming the highes

1.adjectiveA2
Definition

found or placed in a position that is above another thing, or forming the highest part of an object or area

Example

The painting hangs on the upper part of the wall, near the ceiling.

attributive: upper + noun (part of something)

Jude felt a sharp pain in his upper back after the long flight.

Common collocations
  • upper floor
  • upper lip
  • upper arm
  • upper back
  • upper deck
  • upper class
  • upper hand
  • upper shelf
Synonyms
  • higher

    more general; can be used with 'than' (e.g. 'higher than the table'), whereas upper cannot

  • top

    suggests the very highest point or end, while upper can refer to any area above the middle

  • topmost

    emphasises the absolute highest position; more emphatic and less common than upper

Antonyms
  • lower

    the direct opposite; refers to a position below or at the bottom part

Grammar Patterns

upper + noun (body part, floor/level, object)

Usage Note

Upper is always placed directly before a noun (attributive position). It is not used after a linking verb — for example, you may say 'the upper shelf' but not 'the shelf is upper.'

Common Mistakes

The apartment is upper than ours.
The apartment is on the upper floor, above ours.
upper is not a regular comparative adjective and cannot be followed by 'than.'
The drawer is upper compared to the other one.
The upper drawer is easier to reach.
upper must modify a noun directly.
Idioms

gain, get, have, etc. the upper hand

idiom

To get an advantage over someone so that you control the situation.

After a long debate, Sara finally gained the upper hand.

Did the defense team get the upper hand in court?

(keep) a stiff upper lip

idiom

To stay calm and not show your feelings when you are in pain or trouble.

Even after losing the match, Min kept a stiff upper lip.

Why do you always keep a stiff upper lip when things go wrong?

upper — noun

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: adjective/1

Upper, higher, top, above, and overhead all relate to positions that are not low, but they are used differently. Upper is a positional adjective placed directly before a noun and contrasts with 'lower' — it points to the higher of two parts within a single object or area, such as 'the upper floor' of a building. Higher is a true comparative adjective that can be followed by 'than' ('higher than the roof') and works with measurable distances. Top refers to the absolute highest point or surface ('the top shelf') and implies nothing sits above it. Above is a preposition or adverb that describes a general position without touching ('a plane flying above the clouds'), while overhead specifically means directly above your head ('a ceiling fan spinning overhead'). For example, you might rest your arms on the upper edge of a fence (not the very top), but you would put a vase on the top shelf (the highest one).

upper ↗highertopabove ↗overhead ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

Phrases

  • the upper hand
  • upper and lower
  • upper middle class

Etymology

Old EnglishMiddle EnglishModern English

Upper traces back to Old English 'upp' (meaning 'up') combined with the comparative suffix '-ra.' It has been used since the 1300s to describe the higher or topmost of two things. The noun sense for the top part of a shoe appeared in the 1700s, and the slang term for a stimulant drug emerged in American English in the mid-1900s.