Use above board when you mean that a process or action is open, honest, and free from deception. In a code review, issue report, or team message, make clear which decision or process you mean. Keep the expression together, and don't add the before board.
Describe an honest, open process
Above board describes how people handle something. Use it when the point is openness and honesty, such as explaining how a team chose a contractor or approved a purchase. Give the reader a concrete reason for the description. A statement about what people disclosed is more useful than an unexplained claim that everything was above board.
The contractor selection was above board: we shared the evaluation criteria and disclosed each reviewer's connection to the candidates.
This fictional team message describes an open selection process. Sharing the criteria and disclosing connections explain why the writer calls it above board. The expression concerns honesty in the decision, not whether the selected contractor will deliver good code.
Keep the out of the expression
Write above board as two words, without the between them. When describing a process, you can place the expression after was or is. If you're drafting a comment about an approval, name the approval first so the reader knows what you're describing. Adding the changes the wording and loses the intended idiom.
The payment approval was above board: the team recorded the amount, the reason for the payment, and who approved it.
This fictional issue comment uses above board directly after was. The details explain the openness of the approval. Board is part of the fixed expression here; it does not name a physical board that needs the.
Separate honesty from technical results
Use above board to discuss openness and freedom from deception, not physical position or financial success. In developer communication, also keep that meaning separate from a technical result. Passing tests and describing an honest review process are different claims. State the process you mean and give its relevant details.
The release review was above board: the team shared the failing test results before asking for approval.
This fictional team message describes honest disclosure during a release review. It does not say that the tests passed or that the release made money. Sharing the failures supports the intended meaning even though the technical problems remain.
Before sending, check that above board means open and honest in your sentence, that the process is clear, and that you haven't inserted the before board.
Practice: Above board.
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