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

Then a prison boredom—which I soon learned to fear above all else— settled over the cell.

From Literature

But Guardiola has often seemed to covet the Champions League above all else and there will likely be frustration that the competition has brought him more anguish than joy in the past 10 years.

From BBC

Richarlison, the pantomime villain, had the last word as he, above all, answered Tudor's call to fight.

From BBC

That is to say, “I Love Boosters” is, above all else, wild, rollicking and unpredictable.

From Los Angeles Times

"Because, honestly, this guy is a top coach and above all a top man with a really big heart."

From BBC