Over, above or on top of? Over (covering something) " Keep the towel over your shoulders. Above ( at a higher level) " The plane flew above the clouds. We can use either over and above to mean` vertically at a higher level `: " A helicopter was above/over the ship. If we refer to two birds on a tree, we say that one bird is above the other bird ( we are concerned with a higher level , but not vertical). We cannot use over. We use both over and above to refer to rank : " A general is over/above a lieutenant. On top of ( touching): " Put the dictionary on top of the shelf. Under ( covered by), underneath (completely covered by) " Put a mat under/underneath the coffee pot. Below is the opposite of above . It refers to position. " The water was just below my knees.