Dear teachers,

Would you be kind enough to tell me whether I am right with my interpretation of the expressions in bold in the following sentences?

Along with the expensive hi-fi appliances, they took away a costly samurai sword and a statue of the Prophet Mohamed of silver and rubies.

along with = in association with

When the player on the other team dropped the ball, Bill fell on top of it.

That high hill has a tower on top of it.

on top of = on the top of; standing or lying on

The elevator was so crowded that everybody was on top of each other.

I couldn't find my umbrella and then I realized I was almost on top of it.

on top of = very close to

Mrs. Lane had many expenses and on top of everything else, her baby became ill.

Mary worked at the store all day and on top of that she had to baby-sit with her brother.

on top of = along with; in addition to

Although his new job was very complicated, John was on top of it within a few weeks.

No matter what goes wrong, Mary always stays on top of it.

on top of = managing very well; in control of

Mary stays on top of the news by reading newspapers and magazines.

When he was in California, Mr. Jones kept on top of things in his office by telephoning every day.

on top of = knowing all about; not falling behind in information about; up-to-date on

John was on top of the world when he found out that he got into college.

When Ruth won first prize in the contest, she felt as though she was sitting on top of the world.

on top of the world = feeling pleased and happy; feeling successful

The girls were sitting on high cotton because their basketball team had won the trophy.

sitting on high cotton = on top of the world

Thank you for your efforts.

Regards,

V.