/ · 1894 Brewer’s · A · Above-board
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In a straightforward manner. Conjurers place their hands under the table when they are preparing their tricks, but above when they show them. “Let all be above-board” means “let there be no under-hand work, but let us see everything.”
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Entry taken from Dictionary of Phrase and Fable, edited by the Rev. E. Cobham Brewer, LL.D. and revised in 1895.