Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English homepage

Language: Old English
Origin: underneothan, from under + neothan 'below'


1 preposition, adverb
un‧der‧neath1 S2
1 directly under another object or covered by it:
He got out of the car and looked underneath.
It's near where the railway goes underneath the road.
She was wearing a smart jacket with a T-shirt underneath.
Her blonde hair was hidden underneath a baseball cap.
see usage note under
2 on the lower surface of something:
The car was rusty underneath.
A number had been painted underneath the table.
3 used to say what someone's character is really like when their behaviour shows a different character:
She seems confident, but she's really quite shy underneath.
I think he's a genuinely nice guy underneath it all.

under, underneath, below, beneath
Under is the usual way to say that one thing is at a lower level than another, or is covered by it Your shoes are under the table. He lay under a blanket.Under is nearly always used as a preposition (followed by a noun).Underneath has a similar meaning to under, and is used especially when something is hidden or covered a box underneath the floorboardsIt can also be used as an adverb She lifted the cover and peeped underneath.Below is used when one thing is at a much lower level than another, and can be a preposition or an adverb the apartment below ours Mist lay in the valley below.Beneath can be used in the same ways as under and below, but is a more literary or formal word beneath the silvery moon the cliff, and the ocean beneathSee also under

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