What does "topper" mean?
Something that is on top.
Topper
/ˈtɒpə/ name, noun, slang
name, noun, slang ·Common ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: Something that is on top.
- Grammar: topper is listed as name, noun, slang.
- Nearest alternatives: top hat, beaver, best, cap.
- Useful contrasts: bare head, base, bottom.
- Usage evidence: Robert was terrorizing the school topper and made him do his homework.
How to use "topper"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "topper" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "topper" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "topper" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "topper" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "topper" is acting as name, noun, slang in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "top hat" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "topper", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 Something that is on top.
"Deal for network star Henry Morgan to sign a Majestic contract for two albums has fallen thru, with Paul Baron, newly-named artist and repertoire topper at the diskery, kiboshing a deal that virtually had been consummated between his predecessors and Music Corporation of America (MCA)."
- 2 a man's hat with a tall crown; usually covered with silk or with beaver fur wordnet
- 3 A top hat.
"When King George sat down in Perylon Hall he thrust his gray topper under the chair, just as you do when you're in the Automat."
- 4 a woman's short coat wordnet
- 5 Something that exceeds those previous in a series, as a joke or prank.
"In his latest standup set, his topper is a callback to the dog bowl story."
Show 18 more definitions
- 6 an exceedingly good witticism that surpasses all that have gone before wordnet
- 7 A short outer jacket worn by women or children. US
"She was wearing her short pink topper and the small red hat that tilted over one eye so that she looked like a refugee starlet from the Gold Diggers film series."
- 8 the person who is most outstanding or excellent; someone who tops all others wordnet
- 9 A soft, relatively thin, piece of padding placed on top of a mattress, or forming the upper layer of a mattress.
- 10 a worker who cuts tops off (of trees or vegetables etc.) wordnet
- 11 The student who achieves the highest score in an examination. India
- 12 a worker who makes or adds the top to something wordnet
- 13 The head or chief of an organization. colloquial
"Cooley currently is ironing out details of the proposed kinescoping with Klaus Landsberg, topper at KTLA, over whose facilities the hour-long show has been telecast […]"
- 14 A person or tool that cuts off the top of something.
"At first, in the pines, he had worked as a topper in his strong and boldest days, walking up the trees two hundred feet […]"
- 15 One who tops steel ingots.
- 16 A single-handed dinghy, 11 foot (3.6 metres) in length, with only one sail.
- 17 A three-square float, or file, used by comb-makers.
- 18 Tobacco left in the bottom of a pipe bowl; so called from being often taken out and placed on top of the newly filled bowl. dated, slang
"One man was faithful to his pipe, and kept / Despair and deeper misery at bay, / By seeking ever for a "topper," dropped / From some spurned pipe, but that he could not find; […]"
- 19 A fine or remarkable thing or person. dated, slang
"It was a topper of a day for a Sale, although the heat would be hard on the beasts that had come a long way."
- 20 A blow on the head. dated, slang
- 21 A small secondary comic strip seen along with a larger Sunday strip, and usually by the same author.
- 22 A pencil sharpener. Ireland
- 23 Ellipsis of hair topper. abbreviation, alt-of, ellipsis
"These toppers are crafted with a lower density of hair, which makes them blend seamlessly"
Proper Noun
- 1 A surname.
Synonyms
All synonymsExample
"Robert was terrorizing the school topper and made him do his homework."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "topper"?
Common synonyms include: top hat, beaver, best, cap, decoration, dress hat.
How do you use "topper" in a sentence?
Robert was terrorizing the school topper and made him do his homework.
How do you pronounce "topper"?
Pronounced /ˈtɒpə/.
Etymology
From Middle English toppor, equivalent to top + -er.