below

[bih-loh]

adverb

1. in or toward a lower place.

   Look out below!

2. on, in, or toward a lower level, as a lower deck of a ship.

   The captain of the ship went below.

3. beneath the surface of the water.

   Divers were sent below to view the wreck.

4. on earth.

   the fate of creatures here below.

5. in hell or the infernal regions.

6. at a later point on a page or in a text.

   See the illustration below.

7. in a lower rank or grade.

   He was demoted to the class below.

8. under zero on the temperature scale.

   The temperature in Buffalo was ten below this morning.

9. Theater.,  downstage.

10. Zoology.,  on the lower or ventral side.

preposition

1. lower down than.

   below the knee.

2. lower in rank, degree, amount, rate, etc., than.

   below cost;

   below freezing.

3. too low or undignified to be worthy of; beneath.

   He considered such an action below his notice.

4. Theater.,  downstage of.

   There are two chairs below the table.

below

/ bɪˈləʊ /

preposition

1. at or to a position lower than; under

2. less than in quantity or degree

3. south of

4. downstream of

5. unworthy of; beneath

adverb

1. at or to a lower position or place

2. at a later place (in something written)

   see below

3. archaic,  beneath heaven; on earth or in hell

Word History and Origins

Origin of below¹

First recorded in 1275–1325; Middle English bilooghe; equivalent to be- + low ¹

Word History and Origins

Origin of below¹

C14: bilooghe , from bi _by + looghe _low ¹

Synonym Study

Below, under, beneath indicate position in some way lower than something else. Below implies being in a lower plane: below the horizon, the water line. Under implies being lower in a perpendicular line: The book is under the chair. Beneath may have a meaning similar to below, but more usually denotes being under so as to be covered, overhung, or overtopped: the pool beneath the falls.

Example Sentences

That is about 10 percentage points higher than in January, but well below the most dramatic rates announced by the administration over the course of the year.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Meanwhile, the homeownership rate of those born since the 1990s is well below that of earlier generations, due to the relative difficulty they have faced in getting on the housing ladder.

Read more on BBC

Stakes in private funds trade before maturity too, usually at prices below manager estimates.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

In addition, the shifting weight of seawater also applies pressure to the rocks below.

Read more on Science Daily

Lantern found that one rate cut in September would have kept policy roughly consistent with the Taylor rule, but that additional easing has pushed the Fed below prescription.

Read more on Barron's

Related Words

• down