upper English · revision 3782

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=derivation|attested=c. 1300|origins=en up}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: UK /ˈʌp.ə/, US /ˈʌp.ɚ/^(Roach et al. 2011)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is formed [[af|enm|up|-er]], originally the comparative of [[up]],^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988)^(MWU 2024)^(Hoad 1986) replacing the earlier adjective [[over]].^(Barnhart 1988) Middle Dutch upper, Dutch opper, Low German upper and Norwegian yppare are similar formations.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ Higher in position: about 1300 in Etymonline, “belonging to an elevated region”,^(Etymonline) and probably before 1300, in ''Kyng Alisaunder'', in Barnhart.^(Barnhart 1988) Hoad dates it to the 14th century but says it was not common before the 15th.^(Hoad 1986)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ “Pertaining to the topmost part of an object” is from the late 14th century, and “chief, superior” from the mid-15th.^(Etymonline) Of peoples on higher ground, often also meaning “inland”, it is from the 1610s, as in High German.^(Etymonline) The ''upper hand'', perhaps from wrestling, is from the late 15th century.^(Etymonline) The ''upper crust'' was the top crust of a loaf about 1460 and the higher circles of society from 1836,^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline) and the ''upper ten thousand'' (1844) the wealthy part of a community.^(Etymonline) The ''stiff upper lip'' is from 1833.^(Etymonline) The noun, the part of a shoe above the sole, is from 1789,^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline)^(OED 1989) with ''on one's uppers'', “in poor circumstances”, from 1886.^(Barnhart 1988)^(OED 1989) A stimulant drug is American slang from 1968, an agent noun from the verb [[up]].^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline)^(OED 1989)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * c. 1300 – higher in position.^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988)

+ * c. 1460 – ''upper crust'' of a loaf.^(Barnhart 1988)

+ * late 15th century – ''upper hand''.^(Etymonline)

+ * 1789 – noun, part of a shoe.^(Barnhart 1988)^(OED 1989)

+ * 1833 – ''stiff upper lip''.^(Etymonline)

+ * 1836 – the upper classes.^(Barnhart 1988)

+ * 1886 – ''on one's uppers''.^(Barnhart 1988)^(OED 1989)

+ * 1968 – a stimulant drug.^(Barnhart 1988)^(OED 1989)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Adjective===

+ # Higher in place, position or rank.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+ # Situated on higher ground, or farther inland: ''the upper Nile''.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+ # Northern: ''upper New York State''.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+ # In geology, being a later division of a period.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+

+ ===Noun===

+ # The part of a shoe above the [[sole]].^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+ # An upper [[berth]] or upper teeth.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+ # ''(slang)'' A stimulant drug, especially an [[amphetamine]].^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[up]]

+ * [[uppermost]]

+ * [[utter]]

+ * [[over]]

+ * [[above]]

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}