aboveboard

C2+ Topic:Describing People

Also spelled above-board

US /əˈbʌvbɔrd/ UK /əˈbʌvbɔːd/ See IPA manual

adj adv

Meanings

1

adj
honest, open, and without concealment

He insisted the entire negotiation be kept aboveboard.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 adj · honest, open, and without... honest open straightforward candid forthright transparent frank

Opposites

dishonest underhand secretive deceitful furtive shady

Word family

Related forms above board

Etymology

From above + board ('table'), originally a gambling expression: keeping one's hands above the gaming table where they can be seen, so as not to cheat.

bord Old English abufan Old English

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Describing People

# aboveboard

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2+
**Part of speech:** adj, adv
**IPA (US):** əˈbʌvbɔrd
**IPA (UK):** əˈbʌvbɔːd

## Meanings
1. honest, open, and without concealment

## Examples
- He insisted the entire negotiation be kept aboveboard.

## Synonyms
- honest
- open
- straightforward
- candid
- forthright
- transparent
- frank

## Antonyms
- dishonest
- underhand
- secretive
- deceitful
- furtive
- shady

## Related Forms
- above
- board

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: bord
- Root: abufan

## Etymology
From above + board ('table'), originally a gambling expression: keeping one's hands above the gaming table where they can be seen, so as not to cheat.

## AI Etymology
aboveboard comes from above + board ('table'), originally a gambling expression: keeping one's hands above the gaming table where they can be seen, so as not to cheat. Morphologically, the word is transparent as a compound: its parts remain visible in the modern spelling, while the older history of those parts supplies the deeper ancestry. In modern use, the adjective sense is "honest, open, and without concealment", which keeps the etymology connected to the word's present dictionary value rather than treating it as a merely historical label. The wider word family includes related English forms such as above, board, showing how the same base continues to support neighboring English vocabulary. The principal historical forms in the chain include Old English bord, Old English abufan, which anchor the explanation in named linguistic material.

## Topics
- Describing People

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aboveboard

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