# top

Pronunciation: say "TOP" US /tɑp/, UK /tɒp/

## Noun

1. The highest or uppermost part or surface of something, or the part that is normally uppermost, as of a hill, page, screen, or container.
   - Simple: The highest part of something, or the part that is usually highest.
   - _Climbers reached the top just before sunset._
   - _A thin layer of dust covered the top of the old cabinet._
3. The highest rank or position, or the highest point or level something reaches ('the top of her profession', 'at the top of his powers').
   - Simple: The highest position or best level that someone or something can reach.
   - _After years of effort, he finally reached the top of his profession._
   - _Getting to the top in politics demands relentless ambition._
5. A garment worn to cover the upper body, such as a shirt, blouse, or sweater.
   - Simple: A piece of clothing that covers the upper body, like a shirt or blouse.
   - _The store had a sale on summer tops and dresses._
   - _She layered a warm top under her jacket for the hike._
10. A lid, cap, or cover that fits over the opening of a container.
   - Simple: The lid or cap that covers a bottle, jar, or other container.
   - _The marker dried out because someone left the top off._
   - _Make sure the top is on tight before you put the shampoo in your bag._
11. A child's toy that spins on a pointed base when set in motion.
   - Simple: A toy that spins around fast on a point when you twist it.
   - _The children laughed as the brightly painted top wobbled and fell._
   - _She wound the string around the top before launching it._
12. In baseball, the opening half of an inning, when the visiting team is at bat and the home team is in the field.
   - Simple: The first half of an inning in baseball, when the visiting team bats.
   - _The away side loaded the bases in the top of the seventh._
   - _Rain delayed the game during the top of the second._
13. The highest pitch or loudest volume that a voice or instrument can reach.
   - Simple: The highest or loudest level of a voice or sound.
   - _The children screamed at the top of their lungs._
   - _The soprano reached the very top of her register in the final aria._
14. A person who penetrates, or prefers to penetrate, during intercourse. *(slang)*
   - Simple: The partner who penetrates, or prefers to penetrate, during sex.
   - _Being a top doesn't make him the dominant partner; in bed he's actually rather shy._
   - _The two of them were both tops, which made things tricky._
16. In British use, the end of a street, garden, table or room regarded as its head, which varies with the place and the speaker.
   - Simple: In British English, one end of a street, garden or table that people think of as its main or upper end.
   - _They live at the top of the lane, just past the church._
   - _Walk up to the top of the street and turn left at the post office._
18. In BDSM or sexual roleplay, the partner who carries out the activity on the other, often but not always the dominant one.
   - Simple: In BDSM, the partner who does things to the other, often but not always the one in control.
   - _The top checked in often to make sure her partner felt safe._
   - _Experienced tops learn to read their partner's limits carefully._
20. Forward spin on a moving ball, making it rotate in the direction it is traveling; topspin.
   - Simple: Spin that makes a ball turn forward as it moves.
   - _He hit the cue ball with top so it would follow the object ball._
   - _Her forehand has so much top that it dips right at the baseline._
25. A car's roof, chiefly the roof of a convertible that can be folded back or removed.
   - Simple: The roof of a car, especially the roof of a convertible that folds down or comes off.
   - _The convertible's canvas top had faded after years in the desert sun._
   - _On the first warm day of spring, the highway filled with drivers cruising with their tops down._
27. The leaves and stalks that grow above the soil on root or bulb crops such as carrots, beets, turnips, and onions.
   - Simple: The leaves and stems that grow above the ground on vegetables like carrots and onions.
   - _Grab each carrot by its feathery top and pull gently to lift it from the soil._
   - _She sautéed the turnip tops with garlic and served them as a side dish._

## Adjective

2. Of the highest rank, quality, or fame; among the very best ('the league's top scorer', 'a top performance').
   - Simple: Best, or the highest in rank, quality or fame.
   - _She finished the season as the league's top scorer._
   - _After twenty years with the company, he finally landed the top job._
4. Located on or forming the uppermost part of something.
   - Simple: Placed or sitting on the highest part of something.
   - _The top drawer holds all the kitchen utensils._
   - _Birds nested on the top branch of the old oak._
21. Relating to the chest or breasts, especially in the context of gender-affirming surgery.
   - Simple: Having to do with the chest or breasts.
   - _Top surgery reshapes the chest as part of a person's transition._
   - _The clinic's waiting list for top surgery stretched to almost a year._
26. Being the maximum possible in amount, level, or degree.
   - Simple: As much or as high as possible.
   - _The new electric model has a top speed of 155 miles per hour._
   - _The heater was on its top setting, and the room was still cold._

## Verb

6. To cover the upper surface of something, or to add a layer or topping to it.
   - Simple: To put something over the upper part of a thing, like a lid or layer.
   - _He topped the sundae with whipped cream and nuts._
   - _Gardeners top each raised bed with fresh compost in spring._
7. To be in the lead or hold the number one position in a ranking.
   - Simple: To be in first place or at the number one spot.
   - _Several startups now top the list of fastest-growing firms._
   - _The novel topped the bestseller list for six weeks._
8. To excel beyond others; to surpass, beat, or exceed a previous mark or effort.
   - Simple: To do better than someone or something else.
   - _Their latest model tops every competitor on battery life._
   - _We need eleven more wins to top last season's record._
15. To take the insertive, penetrating role during intercourse. *(slang)*
   - Simple: To penetrate a partner during sex.
   - _He topped his partner after they talked about what each wanted._
   - _Some men only top and never reverse roles._
17. To rise above something else in height; to be taller than it.
   - Simple: To rise higher than something else in height.
   - _The redwood tops all the surrounding trees._
   - _These skyscrapers top everything else on the skyline._
19. In BDSM or sexual roleplay, to be the partner who carries out the activity on the other, often but not always as the dominant one.
   - Simple: In BDSM, to be the partner who does things to the other, often but not always the one in control.
   - _In the kink community, some people top exclusively and never switch roles._
   - _He has topped at the local BDSM club for years and now mentors newcomers._
22. To cut off or remove the top of something, such as a tree.
   - Simple: To cut the top off something, like a tree or a vegetable.
   - _Crews will top the dead pines along the road before taking them down._
   - _Arborists warn that topping a mature tree leaves it weak and stressed._
23. To kill oneself; to commit suicide. *(slang, British)*
   - Simple: To kill yourself.
   - _After the business collapsed, he tried to top himself._
   - _They worried he would top himself if no one stepped in._
24. To kill someone, whether by murder or by execution. *(slang, British)*
   - Simple: To kill someone, or to put someone to death as a punishment.
   - _That lot would top you as soon as look at you._
   - _Word in the pub was that a rival crew had topped him over a gambling debt._
28. In golf, to strike the ball above its middle, or to play a shot by hitting the ball there.
   - Simple: In golf, to hit the ball above its middle, or to make a shot by hitting it like that.
   - _Nervous on the first tee, she topped her drive, and it skidded into the pond._
   - _Even tour professionals occasionally top a ball when the lie is awkward._

## Adverb

9. In the highest or best position, as in finishing first in a ranking.
   - Simple: Used to say someone did best or ended up highest.
   - _He ranked top among all the candidates._
   - _She came top of her class in every subject she took._

## Other meanings

- (noun) A party of a specified number of restaurant diners, or the table seating them.
- (noun) The peak price a security reaches during a trading period, just before it begins to decline.
- (noun) An elementary particle of the quark family, the heaviest of the six known quarks; the top quark.
- (noun) Oral sex in which a partner's penis is stimulated with the mouth.
- (noun) A platform at the head of a lower mast on a sailing ship, used to spread and secure the rigging.
- (noun) The highest part of a person's skull, or the hair covering it, and by extension the whole head.
- (noun) The leading or most important person in a group.
- (noun) A grooved cone of wood that the strands of a rope run along as they are twisted together.
- (noun) A loose rope of combed wool fibers, cleaned of short fibers and dirt and ready for spinning.
- (noun) The brink or point of something about to happen.
- (noun) On a faceted gemstone, the sloping area that runs from the widest rim up to the flat upper face, also called the crown.
- (noun) Riding boots with tall uppers, often trimmed in a contrasting color. Usually in the plural.
- (noun) A shot that strikes the ball above its center, as in golf or billiards.
- (noun) The first swarm of bees to leave a hive in a season, short for a longer compound.
- (noun) A nickname for the highest-ranking enlisted Marine in a company, who holds the rank of first or master sergeant.
- (noun) A young leafy shoot of a plant, such as a turnip, eaten as a vegetable. Usually in the plural.
- (verb) To rise high or tower over the surroundings.
- (verb) To tilt a yard or boom by raising one end above the other.
- (verb) To dye cloth a second time with another color over the first.
- (verb) To fit a saw blade with a stiffening strip or back.
- (verb) To pack fruit or other produce so the best pieces sit uppermost and catch the eye.
- (verb) Of a horse jumping, to strike the upper edge of a fence with its hind feet to push off for extra lift.
- (verb) To improve livestock, especially sheep, by mating them with animals of a better breed.
- (verb) To remove the upper end of an ingot of steel by cutting or breaking it off, to get rid of faulty metal.
- (interjection) A call once used among tailors and seamstresses when the candle needed snuffing, the last to say it having to do the job.

## Origin

From Middle English "top, toppe," from Old English "topp" (top, summit, crest, tuft, and possibly spinning top), going back through Proto-West Germanic "*topp" to Proto-Germanic "*tuppaz" (braid, pigtail, end), of unknown ultimate origin. It is related to Dutch "top," German "Topp," and Danish "top." How the spinning-toy sense relates to this word is uncertain.

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/top (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).