UP'PER, adjective [comparative from up.] 1. Higher in place; as the upper lip; the upper side of a thing. An upper story is a higher one; the upper story is the highest. So the upper deck of a ship. 2. Superior in rank or dignity; as the upper house of a legislature. Upper hand, advantage; superiority. Upper-works, in a ship, the parts above water when the ship is properly balanced for a voyage; or that part which is above the main wale.
Source: Webster's 1828 American Dictionary ↗ · public-domain · returned verbatim, no AI