lower vs upper

lower

adj
  • Situated on lower ground, nearer a coast, or more southerly. 

  • bottom; more towards the bottom than the middle of an object 

  • older 

verb
  • To decrease in value, amount, etc. 

  • To reduce operations to single machine instructions, as part of compilation of a program. 

  • To reduce the degree, intensity, strength, etc., of 

  • To bring down; to humble 

  • (lower oneself) To humble oneself; to do something one considers to be beneath one's dignity. 

  • To let descend by its own weight, as something suspended; to let down 

  • To reduce the height of 

  • To depress as to direction 

  • to pull down 

  • To reduce (something) in value, amount, etc. 

  • To make less elevated 

  • To fall; to sink; to grow less; to diminish; to decrease 

upper

adj
  • Situated on higher ground, further inland, or more northerly. 

  • Of or pertaining to a secondary school. 

  • At a higher level, rank or position. 

  • younger, more recent 

noun
  • A denture or retainer for the teeth in the upper jaw. 

  • The piece of leather, etc., that forms the top part of a shoe above the sole. 

  • An upper berth or bunk. 

  • That which is higher, contrasted with the lower. 

  • A stimulant, such as amphetamine, that increases energy and decreases appetite. 

  • The upper portion of something 

  • Someone with higher social standing 

  • A spiritual passageway through which consciousness can reach a higher dimension. 

  • A senior student. 

  • A tooth in the upper jaw. 

  • The Y-shaped strap on flip-flops. 

How often have the words lower and upper occurred in a corpus of books? (source: Google Ngram Viewer )