🗓️ Idiom: Above Board (adj/adv)
💬 Meaning
- Honest, open, and legal, without trying to hide anything.
- A situation, action, or deal that follows all rules and is done in a fair way.
🧠 Example Sentences
- Their business practices are completely above board.
- We want this contract to be above board, with no hidden terms.
- As long as everything is above board, we can move forward with the deal.
🏛️ Origin
The idiom comes from old card games, where players were expected to keep their hands “above the board” (the table) to prove they weren’t cheating. Over time, it came to mean any action that is honest and open.
📝 Practice Exercises
1. Fill in the blank:
The CEO made sure that the entire hiring process was __________.
Answer
above board
2. Choose the correct meaning of “above board”:
A) Hidden or secretive
B) Risky or dangerous
C) Honest and open
Answer
C) Honest and open
3. Rewrite the sentence using the idiom:
“The company did everything in a legal and honest way.” → Change the sentence using: above board
Answer
The company did everything above board.
ℹ️ Other Useful Pages
Rob is a CELTA qualified English teacher with 15 years of international experience. He has a BSc and PGDip from Loughborough and St Andrews universities in the UK. He has taught in Thailand and Saudi Arabia and now works with professionals worldwide.
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