above all

American  

[uh-buhv awl] / əˈbʌv ˈɔl /

idiom

1. most important of all; before everything else; chiefly.

   Above all, the little girl wanted a piano.

   He said that, above all else, he was a dad of two young children.

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above all More Idioms  

1. More than anything else, as in A winter hike calls for good equipment, but above all it requires careful planning. This phrase first appears in William Langland's Piers Ploughman (1377), in which the narrator exhorts readers to love the Lord God above all. Also see first and last.

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Etymology

Origin of above all

First recorded in 1350–1400

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

above all

Muscat now finds itself caught between the wishes of Washington, and Tehran wants to maintain, above all else, its longstanding reputation as the region's discreet diplomatic middleman.

From BBC ● Jul. 14, 2026

They were hugs of gratitude, encouragement and, above all, resignation.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 12, 2026

And above all, within what changes in people’s status?

From Science Daily ● Jul. 7, 2026

Europeans have long shunned air conditioning, viewing it as noisy, a blight on their architectural heritage and, above all, unnecessary as long as the summers were mild.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 1, 2026

She told him that what she wanted above all else was to see him in his full splendor as King of Heaven and Lord of the Thunderbolt.

From "Mythology: Timeless Tales of Gods and Heroes" by Edith Hamilton