upper
Adjectiveuppermost
Noun pluraluppers
Formsuppermost
Pluraluppers
- 1Higher in position, level, or rank, including belonging to a more advanced stage of schooling.
The upper floors of the tower offer the best views.
Promotion placed him among the company's upper ranks.
UsageUsed before a noun: the upper floors. To compare, use higher: higher than (not
incorrect: upper than). - 2Located at a higher elevation, farther inland, or farther north than other parts.
The upper reaches of the river are too shallow for boats.
Farmers in the upper valley plant later in spring because the snow stays on the ground longer up there.
UsageCommon in the upper reaches of a river and in place names, often capitalized: Upper Egypt.
Similarhigher, northern, inland
Oppositelower
- 3The higher or top part of something, or the higher of two similar things.
When we redid the kitchen, we took out the uppers on one wall and put up open shelves instead.
The contractor hung each upper first, so nobody would be working above the new countertops.
Oppositelower
Note
In technical writing the noun names a whole structure or pattern piece. On a machine, the upper is mounted on a slewing ring bolted between it and the car-body. In tipi making, the upper is cut out as one outline. Once the object is understood, the bare noun is enough. Shoemaking narrows the idea to the top of a shoe.
Checked 1 Nov 2026 · 2 facts
- A machine's upper is mounted on a slewing ring bolted to the upper and the car-body. en.wiktionary.org
- Tipi construction instructions describe cutting out the outline of an upper. en.wiktionary.org
- 4The part of a shoe, boot, or sandal above the sole that covers or holds the foot, such as the strap of a flip-flop.
The cobbler stitched a new upper onto the old sole.
Leather uppers tend to last longer than synthetic ones.
UsageOften plural for a pair of shoes: leather uppers.
Note
The shoemaker's term for everything above the sole, whatever the material: leather, canvas or something synthetic. When a pair of shoes is meant, it goes into the plural. Dashiell Hammett's The Maltese Falcon (1930) has "the uppers of his patent-leather shoes" hidden by fawn spats. The sole and the upper are the two halves most shoes are made from.
Checked 1 Nov 2026 · 4 facts
- Dashiell Hammett wrote The Maltese Falcon. en.wikisource.org
- The first book edition of The Maltese Falcon was published in 1930. en.wikisource.org
- The novel describes patent-leather shoe uppers hidden by fawn spats, using the quoted wording. en.wikisource.org
- An upper and a sole are not universally separate components: some moccasins and molded clogs use the same material for both. fdra.org
- 5Younger or more recently formed, as of geological layers.
The upper strata yielded fossils from a later period.
The bones came from Upper Cretaceous rocks, laid down near the end of the age of dinosaurs.
Note
Geology turns position into age. In an undisturbed sequence, strata laid down later rest on top of the ones beneath, so upper comes to mean younger. Formally the word labels rock layers, while the matching spans of time are called late, though writers often blur the two. Unless the layers have been folded or overturned, being higher means being more recent.
Checked 1 Nov 2026 · 4 facts
- This relationship holds in an undisturbed sedimentary sequence; overturning can reverse the present vertical order. stratigraphy.org
- Upper denotes younger geological strata. en.wiktionary.org
- Formal terminology distinguishes Upper rock units from the corresponding Late time intervals. nacsn.americangeosciences.org
- The sequence must retain its original order; overturned strata can have older layers above younger ones. en.wikipedia.org
Less common meanings
- 6A stimulant drug, such as an amphetamine, that boosts energy and reduces appetite.
The musician relied on uppers to get through back-to-back shows.
An upper can leave you crashing hard once it wears off.
UsageOften in the pair uppers and downers.
Similarstimulant
Oppositedowner, depressant
Note
A drug-culture word that names the drug by its effect rather than its chemistry. It lifts energy, so any stimulant that works this way qualifies. It is commonly paired with downers, the sedatives that do the reverse, and "uppers and downers" is the stock way of sorting drugs by what they do to you. The everyday sense of a mood-lifter probably grew out of this one.
- 7A berth or bunk in the higher position, as on a train or ship.
The kids raced to claim the upper as soon as the porter folded down the beds in our compartment.
He climbed into the upper and pulled the curtain shut.
Oppositelower
Note
Railroad language from the sleeping car, nearly always counted against lowers. Studs Terkel's Hard Times records "twelve lowers and twelve uppers," and Walker Percy's The Moviegoer mourns that "gone are the uppers and lowers." The upper was the less coveted bunk. A writer in the Illinois Central Magazine (1914) was told it "was good enough for me."
Checked 1 Nov 2026 · 5 facts
- Upper is used for a sleeping-car berth, in contrast with lower. en.wiktionary.org
- Studs Terkel's Hard Times contains the quoted count of twelve lower and twelve upper berths. en.wiktionary.org
- Walker Percy's The Moviegoer contains the quoted observation about disappearing upper and lower berths. en.wiktionary.org
- Upper berths were generally less desirable than lower berths. dev.gutenberg.org
- An Illinois Central Magazine passage dated 1914 reports that the writer was told an upper berth was good enough for them. en.wiktionary.org
- 8A student in one of the senior years of a school.
Only the uppers are allowed in the senior common room.
Each upper is paired with a first-year student.
Similarsenior, upperclassman
Oppositejunior, underclassman
Note
School usage, often capitalized like a title of standing. In Charterhouse: Old and New (1895), by Edward Parry Eardley-Wilmot and E. C. Streatfeild, any Upper could command any Fag, whatever House he belonged to. The Best of the Harvard Lampoon (2016) still jokes about giving a "concert" for the Uppers. The word carries the privileges of seniority, not just the year of study.
Checked 1 Nov 2026 · 5 facts
- The cited book was first published in 1895. flickr.com
- The full title is Charterhouse: Old and New; its coauthor's surname is Streatfeild, as printed on the title page. flickr.com
- The book describes Fags as subject to every Upper's demands regardless of House. en.wiktionary.org
- The Best of the Harvard Lampoon was published in 2016. simonandschuster.com
- The anthology contains a joke about giving a concert for the Uppers. en.wiktionary.org
- 9One of the teeth of the upper jaw, as distinct from a lower.
The boxer lost two uppers in the fight.
An infected upper can cause pain near the sinus.
Note
Dental and zoological writing use it as shorthand once the jaw is understood. Clinicians speak of the lingual cusps of the uppers, and Peter S. Ungar's Mammal Teeth (2010) of folds on the buccal side of the uppers. Because the denture sense shares the spelling, context decides whether uppers are real teeth or a plate made to replace them.
Checked 1 Nov 2026 · 3 facts
- Clinical dental writing uses the phrase 'lingual cusps of the uppers'. en.wiktionary.org
- Peter S. Ungar wrote Mammal Teeth, first published in 2010. press.jhu.edu
- Mammal Teeth discusses folds on the buccal side of the uppers. en.wiktionary.org
- 10A denture or retainer designed for the upper set of teeth.
The dentist adjusted his upper so it no longer rubbed.
She kept losing her upper at the dinner table.
Note
Singular where the teeth are plural. A mouth has uppers, but a patient wears one upper, and the dentist remakes the upper when it fits badly. The word covers orthodontic appliances as well as false teeth. The Dental Record (1912) describes a lower held by bands and wire while "the upper was retained by means of a plate."
- 11Something that lifts your mood or cheers you up.
Her visit was just the upper I needed before the exam.
Good news like that is always an upper.
Similarboost, lift, tonic, pick-me-up
Oppositedowner
- 12A person of higher social rank or standing.
Thus a vicious circle is established: the uppers offer participation, and the lowers, feeling persecuted, withdraw.
1993, Larry Hirschhorn, Carole K. Barnett - 13In tantric and Taoist meditative teaching, an upper opening of the body, often placed at the crown of the head, through which consciousness is said to pass, especially at death.
The 'upper' is one of nine apertures through which consciousness can leave the body at death (utkrantih).
2005, Shingo Einoo, Genesis and Development of Tantra
Showing meanings only.
Practice
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Origin
Formed from "up" combined with the suffix "-er".
Checked 1 Nov 2026 · 1 fact
- Upper is formed from up and the suffix -er. en.wiktionary.org