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What is "top"

Crossword clues for top

top
Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English
top
I.noun
COLLOCATIONS FROM OTHER ENTRIES
a cliff top
▪ There was a lovely view from the cliff top.
a mountain top
▪ Until the end of June you may find snow on the mountain tops.
a top award/a major award
▪ The restaurant has won several top awards.
▪ Their design won a major award at a Paris exhibition.
a top brand
▪ Kids want to have Nike and Reebok and other top brands.
a top coach (=a very good one)
▪ He’s one of America’s top coaches.
a top designer (=a very good and famous fashion designer)
▪ She always wore clothes by top designers.
a top/maximum speed (=the highest possible)
▪ The car has a top speed of 132 mph.
at the top of your voice (=in a very loud voice)
▪ She shouted ‘Help!’ at the top of her voice.
at the top of...voice (=very loudly)
▪ He could hear Pete yelling at the top of his voice .
at the top/bottom of a list
▪ Her name was at the top of the list of students.
at the top/bottom/end etc (of sth)
▪ At the top of the stairs, she paused.
be (at the) top of the agenda
▪ Energy efficiency is top of the agenda.
be (at the) top/bottom of the league (=be the best or the worst team in a group)
big top
crop top
high/top/low/middle-ranking
▪ a top-ranking tennis player
made it to the top
▪ So far, relatively few women have made it to the top in the business world.
muffin top
▪ This exercise will help get rid of muffin top.
on the top of a pile
▪ He balanced the plate on the top of a pile of books.
reach/be at the top of your profession
▪ He was a very highly respected man, at the top of his profession.
sb’s rise to the top
▪ His rise to the top of the Labour Party was effortless.
screw top
search sth from top to bottom (=search all the rooms in a building)
▪ They searched the house from top to bottom.
senior/top executive
▪ top executives on high salaries
senior/top management
▪ It is difficult to retain top management.
▪ a member of the senior management team
shout of the top of your voice (=shout as loudly as possible)
▪ 'Watch out!' he shouted at the top of his voice.
take...to the top
▪ Even if you have the talent to take you to the top, there’s no guarantee you’ll get there.
tank top
the bottom/top of a ladder
▪ She sighed with relief when she reached the bottom of the ladder.
the lead/top story (=the most important story in a newspaper or news programme)
▪ The floods were the lead story on the news that evening.
the top edge
▪ I gripped the top edge of the door and pulled myself up.
the top grade
▪ Ted got the top grade in his A-level maths exam.
the top of a hill
▪ The view from the top of the hill was beautiful.
the top of a mountain (also the summit of a mountainformal)
▪ We climbed to the top of the mountain.
the top of a scale
▪ At the top of the scale come the predators.
the top of the page
▪ Write your name at the top of the page.
the top prize
▪ The film won the top prize at the Berlin Film Festival.
the top/bottom button
▪ He was wearing a white shirt with the top button undone.
the top/bottom corner
▪ The ball flew straight into the top corner of the net.
the top/bottom half
▪ He graduated in the top half of his law school class.
the top/bottom/middle drawer
▪ He opened the bottom drawer and got out a T-shirt.
the top/head of the stairs
▪ I left my briefcase at the top of the stairs.
the top/main/number one priority
▪ Controlling spending is his top priority.
the upper/top surface
▪ The upper surface of the leaf is dull green.
top a list (=be the first thing in a list)
▪ The novel topped the best-seller list.
top brass
▪ The top brass are coming in from Washington to see how we do things here.
top dog
▪ He always wanted to be the one in control, the top dog.
top dollar
▪ Computer customers are willing to pay top dollar for fast repair.
top gearBritish English (= the highest gear)
▪ Hamilton slipped effortlessly into top gear.
top gear
▪ The car will cruise at 80 mph in top gear.
top hat
top quality
▪ Our chef uses only top quality ingredients.
top round
top sth with cheese (=put cheese on top of something)
▪ Top the potatoes with grated cheese.
top table
top the charts/be top of the charts
▪ ‘Without You’ topped the British charts for five weeks.
top the charts/be top of the charts
▪ ‘Without You’ topped the British charts for five weeks.
top whack
▪ These agencies charge top whack for tickets.
top/bottom etc set
▪ Adam’s in the top set for maths.
top/bottom right-hand corner
▪ the bottom right-hand corner of the page
top/bottom/next etc shelf
▪ Put it back on the top shelf.
top/leading/highest scorer
▪ He was Palace’s top scorer.
tube top
upper/lower/top/bottom lip
▪ His bottom lip was swollen.
COLLOCATIONS FROM CORPUS
■ NOUN
executive
▪ The harshest critics would say that while top executives tried to manage the acquisitions, they forgot to run their companies.
▪ Some companies prefer that their top executives have specialized backgrounds and hire individuals who are managers in other organizations.
▪ For top executives, the discount can be as high as 30 percent or 40 percent.
▪ A strong commitment from top executives.
▪ He was giving a talk at a career-development seminar to top executives from his then-employer, who were evaluating his career potential.
▪ Chief executive officers and other top executives often become members of the board of directors of one or more firms.
▪ Money put into pay packages of top executives is not money spent on new capital equipment.
▪ But the soaring incomes of top executives are not the major issue in the great productivity slowdown.
floor
▪ Elizabeth had only been on the top floor once, at Rufus's invitation, to see his bedroom.
▪ Take the apartment, up on the top floor of a smelly tenement on Prospect Avenue.
▪ The display is housed on the top floor of the museum.
▪ I knew that the top floor was vacant.
▪ You have a house, and nobody lives on the top floor.
▪ The party residence was on the top floor of a private house on Tinton.
▪ He and his family lived in a three-story house near the Old Market, and they sublet the top floor to Langford.
▪ It began as a rough-hewn two-room house whose top floor could be reached only by an outdoor staircase.
level
▪ The top level of a drive is called the Root.
▪ Were the top level bamboos awash by the time we got to Miyako?
▪ At the top level the games are very well handled.
▪ Perched at the top level is one large unit.
▪ Scores of less famous graduates ascended to the top levels of the financial and corporate worlds.
▪ Women are generally educated, hut excluded from the top levels of decision making and power.
▪ Co-workers have always been predominantly female, he promoted women to top levels from the get-go.
▪ Do we have enough high-powered talent below the top level?
management
▪ In this interpretation, information specialists were functionaries who merely implemented the decisions of top management.
▪ Observations about behavior in the top management group lend insight into their power relationships.
▪ The privately-owned company also shook up its top management.
▪ At the other extreme, you might distinguish only among top management, middle management, and the front lines.
▪ Here you begin to know more about who and what carries clout beyond the top management.
▪ Your task force should determine how best to include top management in the process.
▪ In shaping your strategy, do not assume that top management commitment and buy-in are enough.
▪ The fourth characteristic is that some of the feedback should come in the form of intangible but meaningful attention from top management.
priority
▪ His top priority is survival, not the mandate for sweeping change his followers won in recent parliamentary elections.
▪ Disability aside, one of her top priorities is to be a role model and mentor to aspiring radiologists.
▪ The real lesson is that dieting should be taken seriously, for the health of the individual remains the top priority.
▪ The President had given top priority to achieving a nuclear test-ban treaty and was despondent when he could not get it.
▪ Slobodan Milosevic's top priority is a safer world for Slobodan Milosevic.
▪ President Clinton has deemed education the top priority of his second term, and his budget reflects it.
▪ We need to establish Food Force as a matter of top priority.
▪ To keep campaign pledges to make education his top priority, Clinton wants two new middle-class tax breaks for college tuition.
speed
▪ When you let the bike stretch its legs and try to hit its top speed it really goes!
▪ Gilfil gallops twenty miles at top speed, his hopes renewed, but he finds her listless and unseeing.
▪ Ultimate top speed will be limited by the lack of fairing.
▪ He gunned the Budgie, and headed past the truck at top speed.
▪ We are going along at top speed, because we are using all ours up just as fast as we can.
▪ Well, the top speed will then be twenty meters per second.
▪ Nevertheless, in compliance with the Combined Fleet order, the Force promptly headed toward the enemy at top speed.
▪ The man she suspected of stealing her purse was running at top speed along the subway platform and up the stairs.
table
▪ This was adequate for secondary surfaces but the primary surface of the table top had to be treated very differently.
▪ That table top was screaming with reflected light from a two-hundred-watt bulb overhead.
▪ They don't actually remove pollutants; they cause the particles to settle on walls, floors, table tops and fabrics.
▪ Green was frowning, turning a pencil end for end, over and over, on the table top.
▪ Turn out on to a lightly floured table top and knead thoroughly until smooth.
▪ Fitgerald said the process can also be used on counter tops and table top as well as in store display windows.
▪ There were four groupings on the table top.
▪ He presented these treasures plainly; without even a bowl of potpourri on a table top.
■ VERB
blow
▪ Whether the Ipswich directors who watched him blow his top with the unwitting journalist believe that is debatable.
▪ Lit came on the east stage and blew the top off Woodstock.
▪ The wind was blowing over the top of Jinny's head, fluttering the loose, short hairs round her forehead.
▪ By blowing over the top of the paper, you made the air above the slow moving air strip move faster.
▪ It was unusual for Hauser to blow his top.
▪ Then suddenly he blew his top while walking down the street one day.
▪ It had me rolling on the floor to see Schmeichel blowing his top at the scum defence.
▪ Then Nature blows her top, just to remind us.
rank
▪ But one point must be noted: Elton John and John Major ranked top of many respondents' lists.
▪ No Oregon State player ranks in the top 10 in the conference in any offensive category.
▪ Post-abortion medical complications rank as the top reason for women's admission to hospital.
▪ Five Pac-10 schools ranked among the top ten in the nation during the 1993-94 season.
▪ Verio earned the number one spot among a ranking of the top 25 Web hosting companies.
▪ Sorting through the nominees, this is how I rank the top moments in Kings history and why: 1.
▪ It may not have been the most lucrative land scam in United States history, but it ranked somewhere near the top.
▪ The state ranked fifth in the top five fastest growing states in the nation in terms of job growth.
reach
▪ The alleys were steep and there were steps at intervals but there was a sense of achievement in reaching the top.
▪ Some people will tell you to reach for the top.
▪ As the action reaches the tops of the ramps, the check clears the wrestplank.
▪ I reached in my top drawer for the telephone book and hauled it out.
▪ She heard Rodo's voice again as they reached the top.
▪ Time to reach the top, and time to enjoy the way there.
▪ When he reached the top, a thunderous cheer went up.
rise
▪ These curious drum-shaped clay objects characteristically have two perforations on one side and two or three stalks rising from the top.
▪ All have risen to the top because leaders are made, and made by themselves.
▪ The wax melted, and rose to the top.
▪ Dole rose to the top of the Republican Party by unusual means: He repeatedly failed to win national office.
▪ I followed the road as it rose up towards the top of the wolds.
▪ Spaced evenly from the bottom up, concentric rings of black crow feathers rise to the top of the cairn.
▪ Spread the top level and bake for 30-40 mins or until well risen and the top is golden brown.
▪ It sort of migrated upward, like cream rising to the top.
shout
▪ Cheryl's three words were hardly finished before Angela was racing back to the farmhouse shouting at the top of her voice.
▪ These newcomers trotted through the streets-nobody seemed to walk anymore-waving papers, shouting at the top of their lungs.
▪ Was he still rushing up and down stairs shouting at the top of his voice in case anyone had missed his presence?
▪ He was too far away to hear, even if she shouted at the top of her voice.
PHRASES FROM OTHER ENTRIES
at the top/bottom of the heap
be/feel on top of the world
▪ In the spring of 1995, Astros first baseman Jeff Bagwell appeared to be on top of the world.
big/top gun
▪ All the big guns are through to the semi-finals as expected.
▪ He won't be the last big gun brought out in the battle for Stockton South.
▪ In Houston, many of the big gun shops have opted to police themselves.
▪ In part two: Showdown: Soccer's big guns prepare for a shootout.
▪ Lincoln brought in the big guns of William Temple to get bishop and rector to release the curate before the time.
▪ There was a tank with a big gun on it.
▪ They leaned into their big guns, shoulders twitching.
blow your top/stack/cool
▪ My father blew his top when I told him I was quitting medical school.
▪ I used to get so angry on the set that one day I just blew my top and hit John Huston.
▪ It had me rolling on the floor to see Schmeichel blowing his top at the scum defence.
▪ It was unusual for Hauser to blow his top.
▪ Striker Slaven blew his top after being axed from the side which grabbed a draw at Bristol City in midweek.
▪ Then Nature blows her top, just to remind us.
▪ Then suddenly he blew his top while walking down the street one day.
▪ Tristan last blew its stack in 1961, forcing a complete evacuation.
▪ Whether the Ipswich directors who watched him blow his top with the unwitting journalist believe that is debatable.
from the chairman/president/top etc downwards
▪ As the system empties, open all the radiator air vents, working from the top downwards until the system is empty.
full/top marks for effort/trying/persistence etc
▪ You had to give Anthony top marks for persistence, she thought to herself.
▪ You had to give the woman full marks for persistence.
give sb top/star billing
good/top/poor etc performer
▪ Almost all the poor performers were to be found in the economically-disadvantaged regions.
▪ Both Cisco and Stratacom are among the top performers on Wall Street.
▪ But these top performers are aware of the requirements for effective training as well as its limitations.
▪ Deals are also being offered to companies as alternative incentive perks to top performers.
▪ He chose an all-or-nothing strategy to put himself in the top performers in the Great Grain Challenge.
▪ It took me seven months to really understand that I have an individual who is a good performer.
▪ Strasser pointed to the construction, cable, chemical, tire and engineering industries as the likely best performers this year.
▪ The poorer performers tend to die; the better ones, to reproduce.
move/get into top gear
▪ Accelerate smartly so that you can get into top gear as quickly as possible.
▪ It was ready to move into top gear at very short notice.
▪ Meanwhile Pistol Packer was getting into top gear on the stands side, and Caro and Arlequino were not done with.
shoot to number one/to the top of the charts etc
the top of the pile
▪ A new professionalism has gripped Maranello and falling from the top of the pile is not an option.
▪ He turned the paper over and put it back on the top of the pile.
▪ I shall begin this evening at the top of the pile and plunge straight through to the bottom.
▪ Koontz continues to challenge Stephen King at the top of the pile.
▪ Returning to the top of the pile, she began to read the Sunday Times story.
▪ She drew it out and placed it on the top of the pile.
EXAMPLES FROM OTHER ENTRIES
▪ a dressing-table with a glass top
▪ Boyd nervously tapped his pencil on the table top.
▪ Cut the pineapples lengthwise, without removing the tops.
▪ Put the top back on the bottle when you're finished.
▪ The top of the mountain is covered with snow.
▪ The top of the piano was covered with a lace cloth.
▪ The tops of the trees swayed in the breeze.
▪ The elevator will take you all the way to the top.
▪ The skirt comes with a matching top.
▪ There's a wonderful view from the top of the tower.
▪ This jewellery box would be worth a lot of money if the top wasn't chipped.
▪ We got the Christmas tree home by tying it to the top of the car.
▪ When you paint, you should start at the top and work your way down.
EXAMPLES FROM CORPUS
▪ It's a long, but not hard, way to the top.
▪ She looked at him over the top of her cup.
▪ There are two styles to choose from: the traditional apex, shown here, and the flat pergola top.
II.adjective
COLLOCATIONS FROM CORPUS
■ NOUN
brass
▪ More recently, this was made into a luxury hotel for the top brass of the Communist world.
▪ I thought it was military to allow the top brass at home a more direct control.
▪ Have you told the top brass yet?
▪ Would this be because she had something to hide, he wondered, or was she inhibited by her clerical top brass.
▪ It was now necessary to give Klepner visibility in front of Cocello and the top brass.
▪ The only way you kept the top brass in line, reminded them who was the boss.
▪ He saw the top brass one after the other and noted down his reactions and observations.
▪ Yesterday we escorted the couple from their Paris hideaway and handed them over to Forces top brass in Colchester, Essex.
class
▪ At 14 he is already one of the top class two boccia players.
▪ Zoe Nesbitt was a top class rider who dreamed of becoming an equestrian star.
▪ Their top class operation was recognised recently with first place in northern region's quarterly audit checks.
▪ Stewart rates Gascoigne and Beardsley as the top class acts of the hundreds he appeared with at club level.
▪ Catalogue number is; it comes in a booklet style case with top class notes and design.
▪ I think that a horse has to be a minimum of 7/8 bred now to become a top class event horse.
▪ There's also a superb tennis centre where top class coaches can help you to club championship winning form.
▪ Their approach play to goal was top class, but the ball just wouldn't land in the net.
corner
▪ Then midfielder John Collins hit an unstoppable 20-yarder into a top corner.
▪ Falconer's header from a Hendrie cross was going towards the top corner until Schmeichel flung himself across goal.
▪ Chamfer the top corners and nail on with 1-1/2in ovals, punched in and filled.
▪ Paul Bodin's strike high into the top corner gave Swindon a 3-0 lead.
▪ Cross stile, to find stile in top corner.
▪ Stephen had the last word with a shot which flew inches past the top corner.
▪ Angle irons were fitted in the top corners of the windows and diagonal truss rods in the bulkheads.
▪ Slorne was huddled silently in the top corner of her cage looking at the sky.
drawer
▪ She opened the top drawer of her desk.
▪ Climbing off his mattress Gimmelmann went to the top drawer of his dresser and took out a file.
▪ He pulled open the top drawer beneath.
▪ The key was in the top drawer, neatly labelled.
▪ McWilliams' two wins in the Superbike races were both top drawer performances.
▪ My next book was due to have been a literary novel but that's been put back in the top drawer.
▪ She tried the door again, then pulled open the top drawer in Shergold's desk.
▪ Right hand puts down the pen and moves to the top drawer of the desk.
edge
▪ He tried the hook, got a top edge and it went for two over the keeper's head.
▪ It had a nasty, disfiguring stain running along the whole of the top edge.
▪ Pin top edges of valance and lining together and drawstitch the folded edges together.
▪ Stitch braid to the top edge of the swag between the pleats.
▪ The ends can be shaped and the whole thing cleaned up, but leave the top edge until the jointing is complete.
▪ Cut out long thin strips for trimming around the top edge of the boat and fix on with a dampened paint brush.
▪ Pin the pleats as previously planned and hand stitch securely in position, close to top edge.
▪ Stitch braid to the outline of the pleats, covering stitching along top edge.
end
▪ In Britain, the top end of the fashion market is ridiculously designer-expensive.
▪ Fuelling the top end of the market in this way caused resentment.
▪ Reckitt &038; Colman also revealed annual profits at the top end of market expectations, but the price slipped 3p to 603p.
▪ A nature trail leads through an area of mixed woodland to a bird hide overlooking the top end of Lake Vyrnwy.
▪ Chub around Sutton Beck end and at top end of Steeton.
▪ I wished we'd had time to start from the top end and find how we'd gone wrong.
▪ Unilever helped sentiment by revealing third-quarter profits at the top end of expectations.
▪ Differences at the lower end of the scale are obscured by the massive differences at the top end.
executive
▪ And even as he began, a top executive from Renault-Williams tried to persuade him not to go through with it.
▪ General managers and top executives work to ensure that their organizations meet these objectives.
▪ The uniformity of its top executives is the crucial case in point.
▪ General managers and top executives also must be able to communicate clearly and persuasively with customers, subordinate managers, and others.
▪ Large organisations languish and die because the top executives listen only to echoes.
▪ Some general managers and top executives go on to establish their own firms or become independent consultants.
▪ It has lost two top executives in the past week alone.
▪ Projected employment growth of general managers and top executives varies widely among industries.
flight
▪ The inspiring influence behind an automatic promotion triumph is determined Boro will not just make up the numbers in the top flight.
▪ Coventry are just hoping to play in the top flight next season.
▪ Six months in the top flight and he thinks he's f***ing Brian Sewell to the football world.
▪ Oh, not in the top flight, but he travels around the world - anywhere golf is played.
▪ He established Swindon as one of the most skilful sides outside the top flight before a frustrating switch to Tyneside.
▪ I see no reason why I shouldn't continue to score goals in the top flight.
▪ Inverleith retained their place in the top flight with a dramatic 7-6 victory over Touche Ross in the final game.
▪ That is enough to get us back into the top flight.
floor
▪ The top floor directly overhead had been abandoned for years.
▪ Troops occupy the top floors of several high-rise buildings in both north and west Belfast.
▪ It came from the top floor.
▪ On the top floor of the building, with a fine view of the castle.
▪ If gravity was strong, I could go to the top floor of the building and speed up my time.
▪ She sold her record player to Eric from the top floor.
▪ Ralph Grunte woke late in his room on the top floor of the Grand Hotel, and broke wind.
form
▪ At 7 a. m., the Saratoga racetrack is in top form.
▪ But their recording finds them in less than top form, and Solti sometimes leads them astray.
▪ There are certain things, like, I know when my voice is in top form.
▪ After my tour, I didn't expect to hit top form right away.
▪ Joe was in top form, spinning stories, issuing pronunciamentos, dropping withering quips at every opportunity.
▪ All three are in tip top form.
▪ At the moment Dole is in top form with no outward physical sign of trouble.
gear
▪ Quins had started in top gear with Will Carling ripping through the Rugby midfield for the opening try.
▪ It was ready to move into top gear at very short notice.
▪ It was downhill in top gear now.
▪ He just had to adjust to the wide outside and Bones's new top gear, hitherto unsuspected.
▪ Accelerate smartly so that you can get into top gear as quickly as possible.
▪ With a 34-0 lead, top gear was no longer required.
▪ Meanwhile Pistol Packer was getting into top gear on the stands side, and Caro and Arlequino were not done with.
half
▪ The top half of the sepoy had vanished.
▪ The top half of the stable door was open but Waldegrave had apparently closed the bottom behind him.
▪ Spread the bottom half with the cooled apple filling and cover with the top half of the cake.
▪ In fact, the top half of the diagram is not very different.
▪ We want to establish a position in the top half of the table.
▪ There is, however, one further difference affecting the top half of.the diagram.
▪ Some nests are given waterproof roofs by using particularly wide strips of leaves for the top half.
▪ Not since they found the top half of the greengrocer.
hat
▪ I used to wear dinner suits with cufflinks and a top hat.
▪ Janet Flanner, cross-legged on the floor, top hat decorated with one black, one white mask.
▪ He paused inside, adjusted his top hat.
▪ Gentlemen will wear morning dress with top hat, or service dress.
▪ Then the wind rose again and plucked his top hat off his head and sent it bowling among the stones.
▪ At most weddings the bride wears a veil but at this wedding the bride was wearing a beautiful top hat.
▪ A reinforced riding top hat from Christie's costs £120 and the veil an extra £2.95.
▪ They were the people in top hats that the rest of us used to throw snowballs at.
job
▪ But others say a top job here is more likely.
▪ But he has got the top job.
▪ Service delivery is unreliable, and top jobs in key departments have gone unfilled for months.
▪ She is backing a drive to get more women top jobs.
▪ Charles, a relative unknown not long beforehand, became the natural choice for the top job.
▪ Her family had never doubted she was heading for the top job.
layer
▪ During this time, the top layer of your skin is shed to reveal a fresh new one.
▪ Each node's output in the middle layer is connected to just one node in the top layer.
▪ The top layer has six nodes, each with four inputs.
▪ The clay dries and cracks in the sun, and the top layers are blown off as dust.
▪ Then you remove the top layer, which will contain all the worms.
▪ As the top layers become dried out the animals move downward.
▪ If the top layer contains several nodes, then the device computes a more elaborate function of its input.
▪ Every month the top layer of your skin is replaced by a fresh new one.
level
▪ We want to stay at the top level while doing the same things we did 40 years ago.
▪ The top level, the strategical level, is required for tasks like route planning and estimating travel time.
▪ From this base, a set of performance indicators were generated as the top level of the information set.
▪ The effectiveness of training and development should be reviewed at the top level and lead to renewed commitment and target setting.
▪ Fold in the lemon juice and zest. 4 Pour into the prepared cake tin and smooth the top level.
▪ The class now numbers about 5,000 and enjoys top level racing the world over.
▪ Even at the top levels of competition, players use stones belonging to the premises in which they are playing.
lip
▪ The area between his gashed top lip and his nose was heavily bruised.
▪ Her breath came in puffs, ruffling her top lip.
▪ It is as thick as baby food and leaves a soft sediment on his top lip.
▪ She heard teeth shatter under the impact, saw one of them driven through his top lip.
▪ He slammed the straight edge into his opponent's face, taking him between top lip and nostrils.
▪ A sheen of sweat had appeared above Paulie's top lip.
▪ But he rubbed his forefinger guiltily against his top lip while he pondered the implications of a new insight.
man
▪ The top men race over thirty miles ... the women twenty.
▪ He just wants to be top man.
▪ A bitter smile crossed his face as his eyes ranged over the top men in the giant corporation.
▪ But the top men, the team leaders, will be thinking of the coming team time trial at Libourne.
▪ Fergal used to be one of their top men.
▪ The top men had listened courteously to their visitor's observations and requests without reaction.
▪ But he's one of their top men.
▪ Ultimately she thinks the women will be technically as good as the top men and so they should compete together.
management
▪ During this time you will have developed the personal credibility to communicate persuasively at top management level.
▪ In other organizations, the chief human resources official serves as top management for the briefing.
▪ Finally, the toughest problem will probably be to ensure the supply, preparation, and testing of top management people.
▪ I taught them that top management is a function and a responsibility rather than a rank and a privilege.
▪ In most firms, top management incentives are thinly disguised executive perks: not in Hanson.
▪ To replace this expertise, top managements have turned to outside management consultants.
▪ This includes the top management of the organisation as well as departmental staff.
▪ Consequently you can expect many people to question the seriousness of the organization and top management.
manager
▪ The resulting salaries were still rather below market rates for top managers and engineers.
▪ Avoids overburdening top managers. 2.
▪ But top managers say the advantages more than offset any frustration.
▪ Lawrence, unlike many other top managers, also keeps the fans informed.
▪ There are then just two ways in which top managers can proceed.
▪ As confidently as a man, show psychometric tests conducted among top managers by the Vocational Guidance Association.
▪ Such top managers should be regarded as part of the capitalist class since their position is qualitatively different from other employees.
▪ To do this top managers give workers status, authority and responsibility.
mark
▪ This means that a few get top marks, a big bunch get middling marks, and a few come near the bottom.
▪ But first harness, tack and carriages had to be spruced up to ensure top marks for turnout.
▪ You had to give Anthony top marks for persistence, she thought to herself.
▪ She scored top marks, and received the Lord Wolfenden prize for outstanding academic performance.
▪ I have to give you top marks for determination.
▪ We also gave it top marks for looks.
▪ And as a result has awarded it top marks and a prestigious regional Quality Brickwork Award.
performer
▪ We want you to select your top performers in all the mainstream sports - with the exception of soccer.
▪ But these top performers are aware of the requirements for effective training as well as its limitations.
▪ Alternatively, Money Management lists all the investment and unit trusts and gives details of the top performers in each category.
▪ New York and Texas each had five top performers.
▪ While inner London has the lowest mortality rate of any region in the country, not all its hospitals are top performers.
▪ And what about Rugby League's top performers?
▪ Starting at the top, the Vision's eye level grill is a top performer.
▪ Rangers have a top performer in Richard Gough, though he isn't the biggest of central defenders.
player
▪ I went to Brighton and saw for myself the absence of most of the top players due to other events taking place.
▪ That year he and Ballesteros were the two top players in the world, and they dominated the last round.
▪ But the dismal performance in Boston will make many fans think our top players are overvalued and overpaid.
▪ But Braun hinted that he may use just three or four this season to get what he considers top players.
▪ Not surprisingly, some of the best matches of the week were those involving the top players.
▪ There were very few rumours about top players moving from province to province.
▪ It is most instructive to see how top players distribute their thinking allowance during the course of a game.
priority
▪ Safety will be a top priority.
▪ If Brazelton were in charge, training child-care providers would be a top priority.
▪ Aid for environmental planning in developing countries has been designated a top priority.
▪ Our top priority is therefore the introduction of fair votes for all elections at all levels of government.
▪ Cuts in personal and business taxation and social insurance levies are a top priority, to revive weak investment.
▪ Getting away from Julius was the top priority.
▪ But Justice Department spokesperson Myron Marlin said the investigation of the church fires has been a top priority for several months.
prize
▪ With this project, he won the top prize in a course competition.
▪ A turnover of £1.5 billion a year would produce a weekly prize payout of £14 million with one top prize.
▪ As if to prove it, our green-fingered experts have again picked up the top prizes in Aberdeen district council's gardening competition.
▪ This was the Mashers Cup, the top prize for the day for the overall winner of the two rounds.
▪ There would be more chance of winning the £200,000 top prize.
▪ And there is always a chance of winning the £250,000 top prize.
quality
▪ Bovis Homes reckons a major plus point are the top quality carpets, which are included in the £139,950 price tag.
▪ Salads with mixed greens and top quality olive oil or walnut oil can also be greatly enhanced by confit.
▪ I think a top quality keeper should be a priority for any side that has ambitions to stay at the top.
▪ A rigorous refereeing procedure means that only top quality papers are published.
▪ I think it is fair to say that the really top quality olives are usually sold in oil rather than in brine.
▪ The Eagles have infuriated their fans by letting top quality players join the free-agency merry-go-round.
▪ They supply the trade with top quality woven and printed furnishing fabrics and proudly display the Royal Warrant.
▪ The price is high but you are buying a top quality tent and one of the North Face's most popular.
rate
▪ The policy review's top rate of income tax-50 percent - was too low, he said.
▪ The top rate will be no more than 2.5 times the bottom rate.
▪ There are occasions when we have grudged paying a top rate, but been too cowardly to refuse.
▪ A complicated points system could stop men in this type of role getting the top rates of pay.
▪ But the top rates do not benefit existing investors.
▪ The Conservative Government has more than halved the top rate of tax.
▪ Yet top rate taxpayers today provide a bigger share of our tax revenues than they did before.
▪ We have cut the basic rate of Income Tax from 33p to 25p, and the top rate from 83p to 40p.
scorer
▪ But top scorer Craig Maskell saw his weak spot-kick easily saved by Gerry Peyton.
▪ Roy has been top scorer in most of the Ducks' games.
▪ Town should be unchanged, but top scorer, Craig Maskell might get a look in.
▪ Most influential absentee has been top scorer Brett Angell.
▪ The Spurs ace was the First Division's top scorer.
▪ The 16-year-old, top scorer with Middlesbrough Ladies, will join the party at Lilleshall on Friday.
▪ One of the top scorers, the Maharaja of Sarguja claimed 1,150 tigers.
▪ He is joint fifth top scorer in the First Division with 16 tries.
secret
▪ An almost finished game of snakes and ladders was laid out amongst top secret briefing papers.
▪ The Bawdsey experiments were top secret.
▪ His cheesemaker is situated on the outskirts of the village, but he keeps names top secret from the culinary competition.
▪ The developments remain top secret and no-one from the factory or the team would confirm or deny the existence of the kit.
▪ The plans incorporate several revolutionary new concepts which, for obvious reasons, must be kept top secret.
shelf
▪ The top shelf is where Gay Times is traditionally to be found, nestling coyly next to Penthouse.
▪ The food and wine choices are top shelf and usually laid out on the linen-covered hood of a car.
▪ Teacher: Will it fit on the top shelf?
▪ I, who can not reach anything on the top shelf at the supermarket?
▪ At home a few days later, she was pointing excitedly to a top shelf.
▪ All the garages on the bottom shelf are full, but one of the garages on the top shelf is empty.
▪ Although she could just about reach the top shelf with her fingertips, she was very unsteady.
speed
▪ The cutters were then ordered by a signal flashed from the clifftops to close in at top speed.
▪ At top speed, Pixar could produce only about 3 1 / 2 minutes of completed animation each week.
▪ The tank twisted violently about at its top speed.
▪ Voice over Sarajevo Airport; and the Hercules is unloaded at top speed.
▪ Its top speed was lower, and at anything near that speed, its range was laughable.
EXAMPLES FROM OTHER ENTRIES
▪ top quality beef
▪ a top fashion designer
▪ Carlson is our top salesman.
▪ He is definitely one of the world's top golfers.
▪ It's Hyundai's fastest car yet, with a top speed of 121 mph.
▪ My keys are in the top drawer.
▪ Put the papers in the top drawer of the filing cabinet.
▪ Sue is in the top 10% of her class.
▪ the top left-hand corner of the page
▪ The top price paid was $1,200,000 for a print by Degas.
▪ The books are on the top shelf.
▪ The President met with top Korean businessmen.
▪ The prize is to have your hair done at a top New York salon.
▪ We moved into an apartment on the top floor of the building.
▪ You have some peanut butter on your top lip.
EXAMPLES FROM CORPUS
▪ But others say a top job here is more likely.
▪ In addition, a listing is given of the companies in the top 50 of the Index which have offended in each category.
▪ It narrowly beat much bigger rival and fellow supermarkets group J Sainsbury to the top slot, and outshone Tesco.
▪ Miss Vesta Tilley is the top act.
▪ On leaving office he argued that the top level of the civil service needed an injection of fresh blood.
▪ She doubted she would be quick enough to retreat to the top floor if that happened.
▪ Spare house and garage keys in the top right hand drawer of Charles's desk.
III.verb
COLLOCATIONS FROM CORPUS
■ ADVERB
off
▪ Her hair, snow white and abundant, had been topped off in a ragged uneven way by the home's hairdresser.
▪ All this was topped off by a tricorne hat decorated by a plume.
▪ They had detonated sticks of dynamite, and topped off the attack with a flurry of grenades.
▪ Wrap-around sunglasses, black turtlenecks and vintage Rickenbacker guitars top off this respectful and complimentary packaging of six-oh injected swagger.
▪ Anatoliy, a carpenter, had four layers of clothing topped off with a quilted cotton work-jacket and trousers.
▪ A visit to Castle Drachenfels could be the ideal way to top off the adventurers' experiences in Hanike's house!
out
▪ The Bay Area median price topped out at $ 249, 000 during the second quarter of 1990.
▪ In 1995, the dollar topped out at about 105 yen.
▪ Boojums frequently reach a height of 60 feet, and I know of one topping out over 86-feet high.
up
▪ That amount is topped up by a substantial contribution from the private sector in the form of loans.
▪ Diana had produced a bottle of Riesling, and I topped up our glasses.
▪ The parent will choose, topping up the value if they wish.
▪ Experts say the recession is to blame for the rise in office crime as workers try to top up their income.
▪ Only 18 to 25 percent of the survey sample relied on or had their income topped up by the then supplementary benefit.
▪ So when he came into a windfall he knew that he wanted to use some of it to top up his pension.
▪ Around one third of pensioners are so poor that their basic state pension is topped up with other state benefits.
▪ Etiquette requires more or less continuous competition among diners to keep one another's tea-cups topped up.
■ NOUN
bid
▪ Other bidders found out that I could top their bids, and no-one came to the party.
bill
▪ Tom Jones is topping the bill and among others, Joe Longthorne is guesting.
▪ Liberal chums tell me that old, white, military men top the bill.
▪ They're topping the bill in the Central Match Live which kicks off at ten to three.
▪ Pickled cucumbers and beetroot and horseradish sauce topped the bill.
billion
▪ It is estimated that world cereal production, which totalled billion tonnes in 1990, will top 3.25 billion tonnes by 2060.
▪ Advertising revenue on the Internet is expected to top $ 2 billion by 2000, up from $ 74 million in 1996&038;.
▪ The first half of the 1990s was especially lucrative; sales last year topped $ 150 billion.
▪ Dataquest analysts predict worldwide semiconductor sales will top $ 300 billion by the year 2000.
▪ Sales last year topped $ 1.2 billion.
glass
▪ It has a large pool to lounge around, and attentive barman Tassos is on hand to top up your glass.
▪ I go and top my glass up.
▪ Diana had produced a bottle of Riesling, and I topped up our glasses.
league
▪ Repeating this exercise for inflation forecasts, Morgan Stanley again tops the league.
▪ Until recently, 1p coins topped the league when it came to money lost in or near telephone boxes.
▪ Liverpool topped the arrests league with 258 offenders followed by Preston's 223.
list
▪ But when a pharmaceuticals firm wants to launch a drug, James Dettore often tops the list of people to contact.
▪ For all the worries a family singled out by polio might have, financial concerns seldom topped the list.
▪ Second-hand cars continue to top the list of consumer complaints followed by clothing and fabrics, then home maintenance and repairs.
▪ College and travel topped the list.
▪ Sandra was at her side, looking smug; her name topped several of the lists.
▪ The novel, published by Simon and Schuster, tops the best-seller list for paperbacks.
million
▪ Legal expenses topped $ 1 million a year as Isaacs and Meyrowitz lobbied in Albany.
▪ Annual worldwide hemp sales are topping $ 75 million.
▪ This fall, education officials say, enrollment will break that record when it tops 51. 7 million.
▪ The Yoido Full Gospel Church is still growing and its enthusiastic members insist they will top a million by the year 2000.
▪ Analystsexpect the loss to top $ 200 million, dwarfing the $ 69 million the company lost in the previous quarter.
▪ Griffin estimated the toll exceeds $ 10 million and could top $ 100 million.
pension
▪ So when he came into a windfall he knew that he wanted to use some of it to top up his pension.
▪ About eight in ten pensioners have some sort of second income to top up their state pension.
▪ Older policyholders can top up their pension by opening another plan.
percent
▪ The unemployment rate in the region tops 60 percent.
▪ Richard Lugar of Indiana and talk show host Alan Keyes have rarely topped 3 percent in any survey.
▪ He said that 1994 started with an 11 percent unemployment rate and there were three months where the rate topped 10 percent.
poll
▪ Crime recently topped the Field Poll among major concerns of California voters.
▪ He topped the poll for the shadow cabinet elections and played a leading role in the policy review process.
rate
▪ The real unemployment rate has topped 17 %.
▪ He said that 1994 started with an 11 percent unemployment rate and there were three months where the rate topped 10 percent.
▪ The unemployment rate in the region tops 60 percent.
record
▪ The total value of all drugs seizures topped a record figure of £116,000,000.
▪ In Brussels, the market set an all-time high, topping the record set last Wednesday, following encouraging corporate sales reports.
rise
▪ As dawn began to lighten the sky they topped the rise of another mist-shrouded valley and began to descend the other side.
▪ As he topped the rise he let out the throttle.
sale
▪ In the first five months, Sony sold as many as they could manufacture with unit sales topping 70,000.
▪ Annual worldwide hemp sales are topping $ 75 million.
▪ It has since sold over 100,000 copies in hardback, with paperback sales topping 250,000.
▪ Dataquest analysts predict worldwide semiconductor sales will top $ 300 billion by the year 2000.
▪ Unit sales should top 175,000 units this year, up from 58,500 last year.
table
▪ In group B Medical Misfits continue to play extremely well, topping the table.
▪ It is remarkable to recall that they topped the table at the start of November.
▪ They keep being written off but they keep bouncing back with this the eighth time they have topped the table this season.
water
▪ As evaporation is rapid, the chamber beneath will require regularly topping up with fresh water.
▪ Occasionally, you may need to top up the water and to water the compost to keep it just damp.
▪ Philip Holmes is keeping it topped up with water during the drought conditions.
PHRASES FROM OTHER ENTRIES
at the top/bottom of the heap
be/feel on top of the world
▪ In the spring of 1995, Astros first baseman Jeff Bagwell appeared to be on top of the world.
big/top gun
▪ All the big guns are through to the semi-finals as expected.
▪ He won't be the last big gun brought out in the battle for Stockton South.
▪ In Houston, many of the big gun shops have opted to police themselves.
▪ In part two: Showdown: Soccer's big guns prepare for a shootout.
▪ Lincoln brought in the big guns of William Temple to get bishop and rector to release the curate before the time.
▪ There was a tank with a big gun on it.
▪ They leaned into their big guns, shoulders twitching.
from the chairman/president/top etc downwards
▪ As the system empties, open all the radiator air vents, working from the top downwards until the system is empty.
full/top marks for effort/trying/persistence etc
▪ You had to give Anthony top marks for persistence, she thought to herself.
▪ You had to give the woman full marks for persistence.
give sb top/star billing
good/top/poor etc performer
▪ Almost all the poor performers were to be found in the economically-disadvantaged regions.
▪ Both Cisco and Stratacom are among the top performers on Wall Street.
▪ But these top performers are aware of the requirements for effective training as well as its limitations.
▪ Deals are also being offered to companies as alternative incentive perks to top performers.
▪ He chose an all-or-nothing strategy to put himself in the top performers in the Great Grain Challenge.
▪ It took me seven months to really understand that I have an individual who is a good performer.
▪ Strasser pointed to the construction, cable, chemical, tire and engineering industries as the likely best performers this year.
▪ The poorer performers tend to die; the better ones, to reproduce.
move/get into top gear
▪ Accelerate smartly so that you can get into top gear as quickly as possible.
▪ It was ready to move into top gear at very short notice.
▪ Meanwhile Pistol Packer was getting into top gear on the stands side, and Caro and Arlequino were not done with.
the top of the pile
▪ A new professionalism has gripped Maranello and falling from the top of the pile is not an option.
▪ He turned the paper over and put it back on the top of the pile.
▪ I shall begin this evening at the top of the pile and plunge straight through to the bottom.
▪ Koontz continues to challenge Stephen King at the top of the pile.
▪ Returning to the top of the pile, she began to read the Sunday Times story.
▪ She drew it out and placed it on the top of the pile.
EXAMPLES FROM OTHER ENTRIES
▪ After two days of climbing, we finally topped the peak.
▪ The appearance of Comet Hale-Bopp topped that of Comet Hyakutake.
▪ U.S. wine exports have already topped $51 million this year.
EXAMPLES FROM CORPUS
▪ All Saints topped the chart with Pure Shores, closely followed by two artists who played live in Ireland last year.
▪ An evening meal began promisingly with a bruschetta topped with chopped spinach, sun-dried tomatoes, pesto and feta cheese.
▪ As dawn began to lighten the sky they topped the rise of another mist-shrouded valley and began to descend the other side.
▪ Experts say the recession is to blame for the rise in office crime as workers try to top up their income.
▪ Fiercely tart, this dessert is a massive wedge of creamy pie topped with a puff of lighter-than-air meringue.
▪ Griffin estimated the toll exceeds $ 10 million and could top $ 100 million.
▪ Jez should top her with a chopper.
▪ To top it off, no effort was made to go after these guys.
Related phrases:
The Collaborative International Dictionary
Top

Top \Top\, n. [CF. OD. dop, top, OHG., MNG., & dial. G. topf; perhaps akin to G. topf a pot.]

  1. A child's toy, commonly in the form of a conoid or pear, made to spin on its point, usually by drawing off a string wound round its surface or stem, the motion being sometimes continued by means of a whip.

  2. (Rope Making) A plug, or conical block of wood, with longitudital grooves on its surface, in which the strands of the rope slide in the process of twisting.

Top

Top \Top\, v. t.

  1. To cover on the top; to tip; to cap; -- chiefly used in the past participle.

    Like moving mountains topped with snow.
    --Waller.

    A mount Of alabaster, topped with golden spires.
    --Milton.

  2. To rise above; to excel; to outgo; to surpass.

    Topping all others in boasting.
    --Shak.

    Edmund the base shall top the legitimate.
    --Shak.

  3. To rise to the top of; to go over the top of.

    But wind about till thou hast topped the hill.
    --Denham.

  4. To take off the or upper part of; to crop.

    Top your rose trees a little with your knife.
    --Evelyn.

  5. To perform eminently, or better than before.

    From endeavoring universally to top their parts, they will go universally beyond them.
    --Jeffrey.

  6. (Naut.) To raise one end of, as a yard, so that that end becomes higher than the other.

  7. (Dyeing) To cover with another dye; as, to top aniline black with methyl violet to prevent greening and crocking.

  8. To put a stiffening piece or back on (a saw blade).

  9. To arrange, as fruit, with the best on top. [Cant]

  10. To strike the top of, as a wall, with the hind feet, in jumping, so as to gain new impetus; -- said of a horse.

  11. To improve (domestic animals, esp. sheep) by crossing certain individuals or breeds with other superior.

  12. (Naut.) To raise one end of, as a yard, so that that end becomes higher than the other.

  13. To cut, break, or otherwise take off the top of (a steel ingot) to remove unsound metal.

  14. (Golf) To strike (the ball) above the center; also, to make (as a stroke) by hitting the ball in this way. To top off,

    1. to complete by putting on, or finishing, the top or uppermost part of; as, to top off a stack of hay; hence, to complete; to finish; to adorn.

    2. to completely fill (an almost full tank) by adding more of the liquid it already contains.

Top

Top \Top\, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Topped; p. pr. & vb. n. Topping.]

  1. To rise aloft; to be eminent; to tower; as, lofty ridges and topping mountains.
    --Derham.

  2. To predominate; as, topping passions. ``Influenced by topping uneasiness.''
    --Locke.

  3. To excel; to rise above others.

    But write thy, and top.
    --Dryden.

  4. (Golf) To strike a ball above the center.

  5. (Naut.) To rise at one end, as a yard; -- usually with up.

Top

Top \Top\, n. [AS. top; akin to OFries. top a tuft, D. top top, OHG. zopf end, tip, tuft of hair, G. zopf tuft of hair, pigtail, top of a tree, Icel. toppr a tuft of hair, crest, top, Dan. top, Sw. topp pinnacle, top; of uncertain origin. Cf. Tuft.]

  1. The highest part of anything; the upper end, edge, or extremity; the upper side or surface; summit; apex; vertex; cover; lid; as, the top of a spire; the top of a house; the top of a mountain; the top of the ground.

    The star that bids the shepherd fold, Now the top of heaven doth hold.
    --Milton.

  2. The utmost degree; the acme; the summit.

    The top of my ambition is to contribute to that work.
    --Pope.

  3. The highest rank; the most honorable position; the utmost attainable place; as, to be at the top of one's class, or at the top of the school.

    And wears upon his baby brow the round And top of sovereignty.
    --Shak.

  4. The chief person; the most prominent one.

    Other . . . aspired to be the top of zealots.
    --Milton.

  5. The crown of the head, or the hair upon it; the head. ``From top to toe''
    --Spenser.

    All the stored vengeance of Heaven fall On her ungrateful top !
    --Shak.

  6. The head, or upper part, of a plant.

    The buds . . . are called heads, or tops, as cabbageheads.
    --I. Watts.

  7. (Naut.) A platform surrounding the head of the lower mast and projecting on all sudes. It serves to spead the topmast rigging, thus strengheningthe mast, and also furnishes a convenient standing place for the men aloft.
    --Totten.

  8. (Wool Manuf.) A bundle or ball of slivers of comkbed wool, from which the noils, or dust, have been taken out.

  9. Eve; verge; point. [R.] ``He was upon the top of his marriage with Magdaleine.''
    --Knolles.

  10. The part of a cut gem between the girdle, or circumference, and the table, or flat upper surface.
    --Knight.

  11. pl. Top-boots. [Slang]
    --Dickens.

  12. (Golf)

    1. A stroke on the top of the ball.

    2. A forward spin given to the ball by hitting it on or near the top.

      Note: Top is often used adjectively or as the first part of compound words, usually self-explaining; as, top stone, or topstone; top-boots, or top boots; top soil, or top-soil.

      Top and but (Shipbuilding), a phrase used to denote a method of working long tapering planks by bringing the but of one plank to the top of the other to make up a constant breadth in two layers.

      Top minnow (Zo["o]l.), a small viviparous fresh-water fish ( Gambusia patruelis) abundant in the Southern United States. Also applied to other similar species.

      From top to toe, from head to foot; altogether.

Related phrases:
Douglas Harper's Etymology Dictionary
top

"toy that spins on a point," late Old English top, probably a special use of top (n.1), but the modern word is perhaps via Old French topet, which is from or influenced by a Germanic source akin to the root of English top (n.1). As a type of seashell, first recorded 1680s.

top

"put a top on," 1580s, perhaps mid-15c., from top (n.1). Earlier "cut the top off, shave the head" (c.1300). The meaning "be higher or greater than" also is first recorded 1580s. Meaning "strike (a ball) towards its top" is from 1881. Related: Topped; topping. To top off "to finish" is colloquial from 1836; in sense "fill up, add more to to bring to fullness" it is from 1917.

top

"highest point," Old English top "summit, crest, tuft," from Proto-Germanic *tuppaz (cognates: Old Norse toppr "tuft of hair," Old Frisian top "tuft," Old Dutch topp, Dutch top, Old High German zopf "end, tip, tuft of hair," German Zopf "tuft of hair"); no certain connections outside Germanic except a few Romanic words probably borrowed from Germanic.\n

\nFew Indo-European languages have a word so generic, which can be used of the upper part or surface of just about anything. More typical is German, which has Spitze for sharp peaks (mountains), oberfläche for the upper surface of flat things (such as a table). Meaning "highest position" is from 1620s; meaning "best part" is from 1660s. To go over the top is World War I slang for "start an attack," in reference to the top of the trenches; as "beyond reasonable limits, too far" it is recorded from 1968. Top of the world as "position of greatest eminence" is from 1670s. Top-of-the-line (adj.) is by 1950.

top

"being at the top," 1590s, from top (n.1). Top dollar "high price" is from 1942. Top-drawer (1920) is from British expression out of the top drawer "upper-class." Top ten in popular music is from 1945 ("Billboard"). The top dog is the one uppermost in a fight, from 1868 in figurative use, opposed to the underdog.\n\nBut if the under dog in the social fight runs away with a bone in violation of superior force, the top dog runs after him bellowing, "Thou shalt not steal," and all the other top dogs unite in bellowing, "This is divine law and not dog law;" the verdict of the top dog so far as law, religion, and other forms of brute force are concerned settles the question.

[Van Buren Denslow, "Modern Thinkers: What They Think and Why," 1880]

Related phrases:
Wiktionary
top

  1. 1 Situated on the top of something. 2 (context informal English) best; of the highest quality or rank. 3 (context informal English) Very good, of high quality. adv. Rated first. n. 1 (rfc-sense)The highest part or component of an object. 2 # The part viewed, or intended to be viewed, nearest the edge of the visual field normally occupied by the uppermost visible objects. 3 # A lid, cap or cover of a container. 4 # A garment worn to cover the torso. 5 # (lb en nautical) A framework at the top of a ship's mast to which rigging is attached. 6 # (lb en baseball) The first half of an inning, during which the home team fields and the visiting team bats. 7 # (lb en archaic) The crown of the head, or the hair upon it; the head. 8 A child’s spinning toy; a spinning top. 9 (lb en heading) ''Someone who is eminent.'' 10 # (lb en archaic) The chief person; the most prominent one. 11 # The highest rank; the most honourable position; the utmost attainable place. v

  2. 1 To cover on the top or with a top. 2 To cut or remove the top (as of a tree) 3 To excel, to surpass, to beat. 4 To be in the lead, to be at number one position (of). 5 (context British slang English) To commit suicide, (rare) to murder. 6 (context BDSM English) To be the dominant partner in a BDSM relationship or roleplay. 7 (context slang gay sexuality English) To be the partner who penetrates in anal sex. 8 (context archaic English) To rise aloft; to be eminent; to tower. 9 (context archaic English) To predominate. 10 (context archaic English) To excel; to rise above others. 11 (cx nautical English) To raise one end of (a yard, et

  3. ), making it higher than the other. 12 (cx dyeing English) To cover with another dye. 13 To put a stiffening piece or back on (a saw blade). 14 (cx slang dated English) To arrange (fruit, etc.) with the best on top. 15 (cx of a horse English) To strike the top of (an obstacle) with the hind feet while jumping, so as to gain new impetus. 16 To improve (domestic animals, especially sheep) by crossing certain individuals or breeds with other superior breeds. 17 To cut, break, or otherwise take off the top of (a steel ingot) to remove unsound metal. 18 (cx golf English) To strike (the ball) above the centre; also, to make (a stroke, etc.) by hitting the ball in this way.

Related phrases:
WordNet
top

  1. adj. situated at the top or highest position; "the top shelf" [syn: top(a)] [ant: bottom(a), side(a)]

  2. not to be surpassed; "his top effort" [syn: greatest]

  3. [also: topping, topped]

top

  1. 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"

  2. the highest or uppermost side of anything; "put your books on top of the desk"; "only the top side of the box was painted" [syn: top side, upper side, upside]

  3. the top point of a mountain or hill; "the view from the peak was magnificent"; "they clambered to the summit of Monadnock" [syn: peak, crown, crest, tip, summit]

  4. the first half of an inning; while the visiting team is at bat; "a relief pitcher took over in the top of the fifth" [syn: top of the inning] [ant: bottom]

  5. the highest level or degree attainable; "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" [syn: acme, height, elevation, peak, pinnacle, summit, superlative]

  6. the greatest possible intensity; "he screamed at the top of his lungs"

  7. platform surrounding the head of a lower mast

  8. 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" [syn: whirligig, teetotum, spinning top]

  9. 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" [syn: cover]

  10. a garment (especially for women) that extends from the shoulders to the waist or hips; "he stared as she buttoned her top"

  11. 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" [syn: circus tent, big top, round top]

  12. [also: topping, topped]

top

  1. v. go beyond; "She exceeded our expectations"; "She topped her performance of last year" [syn: exceed, transcend, overstep, pass, go past]

  2. pass by, over, or under without making contact; "the balloon cleared the tree tops" [syn: clear]

  3. be at the top of or constitute the top or highest point; "A star tops the Christmas Tree"

  4. be ahead of others; be the first; "she topped her class every year" [syn: lead]

  5. provide with a top; "the towers were topped with conical roofs"

  6. reach or ascend the top of; "The hikers topped the mountain just before noon"

  7. strike (the top part of a ball in golf, baseball, or pool) giving it a forward spin

  8. cut the top off; "top trees and bushes" [syn: pinch]

  9. be the culminating event; "The speech crowned the meeting" [syn: crown]

  10. finish up or conclude; "They topped off their dinner with a cognac"; "top the evening with champagne" [syn: top off]

  11. [also: topping, topped]

Related phrases:
Gazetteer
Related phrases:
Wikipedia
TOP

TOP may refer to:

Top (disambiguation)

A top is a spinning toy.

Top may also refer to:

Top (technical analysis)

In technical analysis, a top is an event in which a security's market price reaches a high, then a higher high, and then a lower high.

The first high signifies the pressure from buying was greater than the pressure from selling. The second higher high suggests that buying still had more pressure than the selling. The third lower high suggests that selling pressure will not let prices rise as high as the previous high. This turning point from buying pressure to selling pressure is called a top.

Top (comics)

Top is a fictional supervillain appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics.

Top (clothing)

A top is clothing that covers at least the chest, but which usually covers most of the upper human body between the neck and the waistline. The bottom of tops can be as short as mid-torso, or as long as mid-thigh. Men's tops are generally paired with pants, and women's with pants or skirts. Common types of tops are t-shirts, blouses and shirts.

Top (software)

top (table of processes) is a task manager program found in many Unix-like operating systems. It produces an ordered list of running processes selected by user-specified criteria, and updates it periodically. Default ordering is by CPU usage, and only the top CPU consumers are shown. top shows how much processing power and memory are being used, as well as other information about the running processes. Some versions of top allow extensive customization of the display, such as choice of columns or sorting method.

There are several different versions of top. The traditional Unix version was written by William LeFebvre and originally copyrighted in 1984. It is hosted on SourceForge, and release 3.7 was announced in 2008.

The Linux top version is part of the procps-ng group of tools. It was originally written by Roger Binns but shortly thereafter it was taken over by others.

top is useful for system administrators, as it shows which users and processes are consuming the most system resources at any given time.

On Solaris, the roughly equivalent program is prstat. MS-DOS has tasklist and graphical Microsoft operating systems have the Windows Task Manager. IBM AIX has an updating running processes list as part of the topas and topas_nmon commands.

The load average numbers in Linux refers to the sum of the number of processes waiting in the run-queue plus the number currently executing. The number is absolute, not relative. And thus it can be unbounded; unlike utilization. The instant variations of the number of processes are damped with a exponential decay formula which is calculated using fixed point math.

The ps program is similar to top, but instead produces a snapshot of processes taken at the time of invocation.

Top (sailing ship)

The top on a traditional square rigged ship, is the platform at the upper end of each (lower) mast. This is not the masthead " crow's nest" of the popular imagination – above the mainmast (for example) is the main-topmast, main-topgallant-mast and main-royal-mast, so that the top is actually about 1/4 to 1/3 of the way up the mast as a whole.

The main purpose of the top is to anchor the shrouds of the topmast that extends above it. Shrouds down to the side of the hull would be at too acute an angle from the mast, so struts running out from the mast are added to take the place of the hull for a smaller copy (the topmast) of the lower mast and its rigging. Placing a few timbers between these struts produces a useful platform, the top. The futtock shrouds carry the load of the upper shrouds into the mast below.

At the upper end of the topmast and topgallant, there is a similar situation regarding the next mast up (topgallant and royal respectively). At these points a smaller top might be constructed, but it is more usual simply to leave the shroud-bearing struts open, in which case they are known as crosstrees.

Access for sailors to the top may be by a Jacob's ladder, lubber's hole, or the futtock shrouds.

A fore-topmast might be stepped into a similar fore-top platform on the foremast. A mizen-top would be a platform on the mizenmast. Similar main-top and fore-top platforms have been retained on steam ships and motor vessels as preferred locations for installing rotating radar antennae.

Top (rolling papers)

Top is a brand of cigarette rolling papers distributed by Republic Tobacco of Glenview, Illinois. Republic Tobacco paid an undisclosed amount to acquire the brand from R. J. Reynolds in 1987.

Manufactured and imported into the United States from France, Top papers are available in two different styles, regular and 1½ size. Both size variations are sold in virtually identical light-yellow-colored packages with blue lettering, as well as a red and blue top which adorns its center. Top papers are most prevalent in the Midwestern United States, where they are popular within the marijuana-smoking culture.

Top (mathematics)

In the context of a module M over a ring R, the top of M is the largest semisimple quotient module of M if it exists.

For finite-dimensional k-algebras (k a field), if rad(M) denotes the intersection of all proper maximal submodules of M (the radical of the module), then the top of M is M/rad(M). In the case of local rings with maximal ideal P, the top of M is M/PM. In general if R is a semilocal ring (=semi-artinian ring), that is, if R/Rad(R) is an Artinian ring, where Rad(R) is the Jacobson radical of R, then M/rad(M) is a semisimple module and is the top of M. This includes the cases of local rings and finite dimensional algebras over fields.

Top (tool)

A top (also called a rope wrench, rope separator or rope tool) is a tool used in the manufacture of laid rope.

The top is used to prevent the strands of a rope twisting together prematurely, which would lead to the rope being loose, allowing it to untwist. The amount of pressure applied to the top determines the stiffness of the final product; more pressure forces the strands together more tightly, making a rope that is harder to bend.

Tops come in a variety of forms for use on different types of rope. The simplest is a forked stick, used to create three strand rope, however more elaborate grooved bullet-shaped and cast iron types are available.

Depending on the gauge of rope being made, the top can either be handheld or mounted on a trolley that moves along the ropewalk.

Related phrases:

Usage examples of "top".

On top of that, every vessel he took had a quantity of money aboard, the funds necessary to purchase fresh stores and to pay for emergency repairs.

Beyond, the woods and hills of the tiny world appeared to drop with an increasing, breath-taking abruptness, so that he felt as if he were perched insecurely on the top of a great green ball, afloat in a chasm of starry purple-blue.

Tim had always found himself especially attuned to the deserted charms of Candie Gardens in winter, enjoying the bare traceries of the trees and the widened harbour view, the few points of colour against the monochrome background - the red and pink of the camellias near the top gate, the hanging yellow bells of the winter-flowering abutilon with their red clappers, even the iridescence of the mallard drake circling the largest of the ponds with his speckled mate.

Each chain over a shore span consists of two segments, the longer attached to the tie at the top of the river tower, the shorter to the link at the top of the abutment tower, and the two jointed together at the lowest point.

Banish coming down hard on top of the girl with the baby and the gun and Abies falling forward from the act of Fagin being blown back off his feet and settling still on the ground.

OpSys people plus communicate the performance results of measurements of OpSys efforts toward achieving those top level goals.

It felt better to wear out my frustrations by the use of my legs, and so I resolved to follow the capering street to the top if need be and see the Vincula and Acies Castle from that height, and then to show my badge of office to the guards at the fortifications there and walk along them to the Capulus and so cross the river by the lowest way.

At the top of the slow rise, the parcel became flat and I could see gently undulating acreage sweeping out in all directions.

Both the admin and the assembly buildings had apartments that had been used by the top people assigned to Aquarius.

In front of the advancing British there lay a rolling hill, topped by a further one.

Optical center-the site on an advertisement that is usually about two-thirds from the top.

At the top of this street, on the side farthest from the cathedral, the vast west window of which could just be seen over the gables, chimneys, and stork-nests of the opposite houses, we stopped before the common door of one of the lofty old houses, against the posts of which were attached several affiches or notices of differing forms and material.

Twenty-five feet above them, from the aft part of the sail, the Bigmouth antenna raised steadily upward, the top of the mast breaking the surface.

Slowly Brandt climbed to the top of the sail from the aft bulkhead of the cockpit, keeping low to the top of the structure where he could see clearly yet not be picked off from the deck.

Von Brandt crawled back on the top of the sail to get a look at the aft deck.