below
Americanadverb
-
in or toward a lower place.
Look out below!
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on, in, or toward a lower level, as a lower deck of a ship.
The captain of the ship went below.
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beneath the surface of the water.
Divers were sent below to view the wreck.
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on earth.
the fate of creatures here below.
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in hell or the infernal regions.
-
at a later point on a page or in a text.
See the illustration below.
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in a lower rank or grade.
He was demoted to the class below.
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under zero on the temperature scale.
The temperature in Buffalo was ten below this morning.
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Theater. downstage.
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Zoology. on the lower or ventral side.
preposition
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lower down than.
below the knee.
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lower in rank, degree, amount, rate, etc., than.
below cost;
below freezing.
-
too low or undignified to be worthy of; beneath.
He considered such an action below his notice.
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Theater. downstage of.
There are two chairs below the table.
preposition
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at or to a position lower than; under
-
less than in quantity or degree
-
south of
-
downstream of
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unworthy of; beneath
adverb
-
at or to a lower position or place
-
at a later place (in something written)
see below
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archaic beneath heaven; on earth or in hell
Related Words
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.
Etymology
Origin of below
First recorded in 1275–1325; Middle English bilooghe; equivalent to be- + low 1
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Their numbers have fallen below one million in the UK which is down by 30% in more than 10 years, Devon Wildlife Trust said.
From BBC
Read the full list of 2026 Producers Guild Award winners below.
From Los Angeles Times
Lisowski - ranked 22nd in the world, 16 places below Higgins - held his nerve admirably at the end to make sure of victory.
From BBC
Inflation in Japan’s capital cooled below the central bank’s 2% target for the first time in over a year, but the slowdown is unlikely to derail further interest rate hikes.
The Old Firm are playing catch-up while being hounded from below.
From BBC
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
