What does top mean?

What does top mean?. The world's largest and most trusted free online dictionary: definitions, synonyms, word origins, example sentences, word games, and more.

What does top mean? - The Free Dictionary

Search

[n] the upper part of anything(the mower cuts off the tops of the grass the title should be written at the top of the first page)[v] be superior or better than some standard(She exceeded our expectations She topped her performance of last year)[a] situated at the top or highest position(th

top

top - The Free Dictionary

[n] the upper part of anything
(the mower cuts off the tops of the grass the title should be written at the top of the first page)

[v] be superior or better than some standard
(She exceeded our expectations She topped her performance of last year)

[a] situated at the top or highest position
(the top shelf)

[n] the highest or uppermost side of anything
(put your books on top of the desk only the top side of the box was painted)

[v] pass by, over, or under without making contact
(the balloon cleared the tree tops)

[n] the top or extreme point of something (usually a mountain or hill)
(the view from the peak was magnificent they clambered to the tip of Monadnock the region is a few molecules wide at the summit)

[v] be at the top of or constitute the top or highest point
(A star tops the Christmas Tree)

[n] the first half of an inning; while the visiting team is at bat
(a relief pitcher took over in the top of the fifth)

[v] be ahead of others; be the first
(she topped her class every year)

[n] the highest level or degree attainable; the highest stage of development
(his landscapes were deemed the acme of beauty the artist's gifts are at their acme at the height of her career the peak of perfection summer was at its peak ...catapulted Einstein to the pinnacle of fame the summit of his ambition so many highest superlatives achieved by man at the top of his profession)

[v] provide with a top or finish the top (of a structure)
(the towers were topped with conical roofs)

[n] the greatest possible intensity
(he screamed at the top of his lungs)

[v] reach or ascend the top of
(The hikers topped the mountain just before noon)

[n] platform surrounding the head of a lower mast

[v] strike (the top part of a ball in golf, baseball, or pool) giving it a forward spin

[n] a conical child's plaything tapering to a steel point on which it can be made to spin
(he got a bright red top and string for his birthday)

[v] cut the top off
(top trees and bushes)

[n] covering for a hole (especially a hole in the top of a container)
(he removed the top of the carton he couldn't get the top off of the bottle put the cover back on the kettle)

[v] be the culminating event
(The speech crowned the meeting)

[n] a garment (especially for women) that extends from the shoulders to the waist or hips
(he stared as she buttoned her top)

[v] finish up or conclude
(They topped off their dinner with a cognac top the evening with champagne)

[n] a canvas tent to house the audience at a circus performance
(he was afraid of a fire in the circus tent they had the big top up in less than an hour)

Other vocabulary

'tween, 'tween decks, t, t cell, t hinge, t lymphocyte, t'ai chi, t'ai chi chuan, t'ien-ching, t-bar, t-bar lift, t-bill, t-bone steak, t-junction, t-man, t-network, t-scope, t-shaped, t-shirt, t-square, t. e. lawrence, t. h. white, t. s. eliot, t.b., ta, ta'ziyeh, taal, tab, tab key, tabanidae, o, o level, o ring, o'brien, o'casey, o'clock, o'connor, o'er, o'flaherty, o'hara, o'keeffe, o'neill, o'toole, o. henry, o.d., o.e.d., o.k., oaf, oafish, oahu, oahu island, oak, oak apple, oak blight, oak chestnut, oak fern, oak leaf cluster, oak tree, oak-leaved goosefoot, oaken

Dictionary

A dictionary is a listing of lexemes from the lexicon of one or more specific languages, often arranged alphabetically (or by consonantal root for Semitic languages or radical and stroke for ideographic languages), which may include information on definitions, usage, etymologies, pronunciations, translation, etc. It is a lexicographical reference that shows inter-relationships among the data.

A broad distinction is made between general and specialized dictionaries. Specialized dictionaries include words in specialist fields, rather than a complete range of words in the language. Lexical items that describe concepts in specific fields are usually called terms instead of words, although there is no consensus whether lexicology and terminology are two different fields of study. In theory, general dictionaries are supposed[citation needed] to be semasiological, mapping word to definition, while specialized dictionaries are supposed to be onomasiological, first identifying concepts and then establishing the terms used to designate them. In practice, the two approaches are used for both types. There are other types of dictionaries that do not fit neatly into the above distinction, for instance bilingual (translation) dictionaries, dictionaries of synonyms (thesauri), and rhyming dictionaries. The word dictionary (unqualified) is usually understood to refer to a general purpose monolingual dictionary.

There is also a contrast between prescriptive or descriptive dictionaries; the former reflect what is seen as correct use of the language while the latter reflect recorded actual use. Stylistic indications (e.g. "informal" or "vulgar") in many modern dictionaries are also considered by some to be less than objectively descriptive.

The first recorded dictionaries date back to Sumerian times around 2300 BCE, in the form of bilingual dictionaries, and the oldest surviving monolingual dictionaries are Chinese dictionaries c. 3rd century BCE. The first purely English alphabetical dictionary was A Table Alphabeticall, written in 1604, and monolingual dictionaries in other languages also began appearing in Europe at around this time. The systematic study of dictionaries as objects of scientific interest arose as a 20th-century enterprise, called lexicography, and largely initiated by Ladislav Zgusta. The birth of the new discipline was not without controversy, with the practical dictionary-makers being sometimes accused by others of having an "astonishing" lack of method and critical-self reflection.