above

/əˈbʌv/preposition, adverb, adjective, noun

above is spelled A-B-O-V-E: 5 letters and 2 syllables. It appears 158 times per million words in written English, the 638th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a preposition, above means “Physically over; on top of; worn on top of, said of clothing” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).

How many letters and syllables are in above?

Letters	5: A-B-O-V-E
Syllables	2 (from its American pronunciation)
In writing	158 times per million words; the 638th most frequent word form
Wrong spellings searched	none measured in search
Rhymes with	of love thereof hereof more

Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.

How common is above?

Above appears 158 times per million words in written English, the 638th most frequent word form in the list.

above0.0010.010.11101001,00010,000

rarerper million words of written Englishmore common

Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).

How do you pronounce above?

US /əˈbʌv/
/əˈbʊv/

Above has 2 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-above.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).

What rhymes with above?

5 words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as above from its last stressed vowel (/ʌv/):

Computed by PlainSpell from the pronunciations in the English Wiktionary (dump of September 2, 2026): a rhyme shares every sound from the last stressed vowel to the end; ordered by written frequency (wordfreq 3.1).

What does above mean?

The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).

preposition

1
Physically over; on top of; worn on top of, said of clothing.
He always put his coat on above his sweater.
2
In or to a higher place; higher than; on or over the upper surface.
3
Farther north than.
Idaho is above Utah.
4
Rising; appearing out of reach height-wise.
5
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.
to cut above average
6
Higher in rank, status, or position.
to stand head and shoulders above the rest
7
ScotlandIn addition to; besides.
above and beyond the call of duty
8
Surpassing in number or quantity; more than.
That amount is way above our asking price.

adverb

1
Directly overhead; vertically on top of.
2
Higher in the same page; earlier in the order as far as writing products go.
3
Into or from heaven; in the sky.
He’s in a better place now, floating free as the clouds above.
4
In a higher place; upstairs; farther upstream.
5
Higher in rank, power, or position.
He appealed to the court above.
6
archaicIn addition.
7
More in number.
8
Above zero; above freezing.
It was a cold day at only 5 above.

adjective

1
Of heaven; heavenly.
2
Being located higher on the same page or on a preceding page.

noun

1
Heaven.
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
archaicBetterment, raised status or condition.

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).

How do you abbreviate above?

Wiktionary records one abbreviation of above: abv..