above-board, advb. phr. often used adjectively.
(əˈbʌvbɔəd)
[f. above prep. + board n.]
1. ‘In open sight; without artifice or trick. A figurative expression, borrowed from gamesters, who, when they put their hands under the table, are changing their cards.’ J. (He adds, ‘It is used only in familiar language’; but see the quotations.) a. In orig. use.
| 1616 Beaum. & Fl. Cust. Country i. i. Yet if you play not fair play, and above-board too, I have a foolish gin here. |
b. fig. Openly, freely; without dissimulation or concealment; also, publicly exhibited.
| 1628 Earle Microcosm. lxxvi. 157 One that..does it fair and above-board without legerdemain, and neither sharks for a cup or a reckoning. 1648 Symmons Vind. 46 Such a disloyal, hypocritical, unchristian, and bloody faction as this now above-board. 1664 H. More Myst. Iniq. ix. 27 They would have dealt above-board, and like honest men. 1788 Burke Sp. agst. Hastings Wks. XIII. 293 All that is in this transaction is fair and above-board. 1871 Freeman Histor. Ess. Ser. i. iii. 69 Edward's conduct was throughout honest and aboveboard. |