a

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a U+0061, a
LATIN SMALL LETTER A
`
[U+0060]
Basic Latin b
[U+0062]
U+1D43, ᵃ
MODIFIER LETTER SMALL A

[U+1D42]
Phonetic Extensions
[U+1D44]
U+FF41, a
FULLWIDTH LATIN SMALL LETTER A

[U+FF40]
Halfwidth and Fullwidth Forms
[U+FF42]

Translingual[edit]

Etymology 1[edit]

Approximate form of Greek upper case Α (a, “alpha”) that was the source for both common variants of a Modification of capital A.

Pronunciation[edit]

  • (letter, most languages): IPA(key): /ɑː/, /a/ Big Nambas
  • (file)

Letter[edit]

a (upper case A)

  1. The first letter of the basic modern Latin alphabet.
    (superscript) See ª.

Symbol[edit]

a

  1. (IPA, phonetics) an open front or central unrounded vowel.
  2. (IPA, superscript ⟨ᵃ⟩) [a]-coloring or a weak, fleeting, epenthetic or echo [a].
  3. (international standards) transliterates Indic (or equivalent).

See also[edit]

Further reading[edit]

Etymology 2[edit]

Abbreviation of atto-, from Danish atten (eighteen).

Symbol[edit]

a

  1. atto-, prefix for 10-18 in the International System of Units.

Etymology 3[edit]

From Latin annum or annus.

Symbol[edit]

a

  1. Year as a unit of time, specifically a Julian year or 365.25 days.

Etymology 4[edit]

Abbreviation of are, from French are.

Symbol[edit]

a

  1. An are, a unit of area one hundredth of a hectare; ares.

Etymology 5[edit]

Abbreviation of English acceleration.

Symbol[edit]

a

  1. (physics) acceleration

Etymology 6[edit]

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium. Particularly: “from annuity?”)

Symbol[edit]

a

  1. (actuarial notation) Annuity; (specifically) annuity-immediate.
    ax:n̅|n-year annuity-immediate to a person currently age x
    axlife annuity-immediate to a person currently age x

Other representations of A:

Gallery[edit]

English[edit]

Etymology 1[edit]

Runic letter ᚫ (a, “ansuz”), source for Anglo-Saxon Futhorc letters replaced by a
Runic letter (a, ansuz), source for Anglo-Saxon Futhorc letters replaced by a

From Middle English and Old English lower case letter a and split of Middle English and Old English lower case letter æ.

  • Anglo-Saxon Futhorc letter ᚪ (a, “āc”) Old English lower case letter a from 7th century replacement by Latin lower case letter a of the Anglo-Saxon Futhorc letter (a, āc), derived from Runic letter (a, Ansuz).
  • Anglo-Saxon Futhorc letter æsc (æ) Old English lower case letter æ from 7th century replacement by Latin lower case ligature æ of the Anglo-Saxon Futhorc letter (æ, æsc), also derived from Runic letter (a, Ansuz).

Alternative forms[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Letter[edit]

a (lowercase, uppercase A, plural as or a's)

  1. The first letter of the English alphabet, written in the Latin script.
Usage notes[edit]
Derived terms[edit]
See also[edit]

Numeral[edit]

a (lower case, upper case A)

  1. The ordinal number first, derived from this letter of the English alphabet, called a and written in the Latin script.

Noun[edit]

a (plural aes)[1]

  1. The name of the Latin script letter A / a.
Alternative forms[edit]
Derived terms[edit]
Translations[edit]
See also[edit]

Etymology 2[edit]

From Middle English a, an, from Old English ān (one; a; lone; sole). More at one. The "n" was gradually lost before consonants in almost all dialects by the 15th century. Cognate with Alemannic German a (a, an), East Franconian a (a, an).

Pronunciation[edit]

Article[edit]

a (indefinite)

  1. One; any indefinite example of. [from before 1150][2]
    There was a man here looking for you yesterday.
    • 1992, Rudolf M[athias] Schuster, The Hepaticae and Anthocerotae of North America: East of the Hundredth Meridian, volume V, New York, N.Y.: Columbia University Press, →ISBN, page vii:
      With fresh material, taxonomic conclusions are leavened by recognition that the material examined reflects the site it occupied; a herbarium packet gives one only a small fraction of the data desirable for sound conclusions. Herbarium material does not, indeed, allow one to extrapolate safely: what you see is what you get []
    • 2005, Emily Kingsley (lyricist), Kevin Clash (voice actor), “A Cookie is a Sometime Food”, Sesame Street, season 36, Sesame Workshop:
      Hoots the Owl: Yes a, fruit, is a [sic], any, time, food!
    • 2016, VOA Learning English (public domain)
      Anna, do you have a pen? — Yes. I have a pen in my bag. I have a (stressed) …
      (file)
  2. One; used before score, dozen, hundred, thousand, million, etc.
    I've seen it happen a hundred times.
  3. Used in some phrases denoting quantity, such as a few, a good many, a couple, a little (for an uncountable noun), etc.
    They asked me a few questions.
  4. Used in some adverbial phrases denoting degree or extent, such as a little, a bit, a lot, etc.
    The door was opened a little.
  5. The same; one and the same. Used in phrases such as of a kind, birds of a feather, etc.
    We are of a mind on matters of morals.
    They're two of a kind.
  6. Any; every; used before a noun which has become modified to limit its scope.[1]
    A man who dies intestate leaves his children troubles and difficulties.
  7. Any; used with a negative to indicate not a single one.[3]
    It was so dark that we couldn't see a thing.
    He fell all that way, and hasn't a bump on his head?
  8. Used before an adjective that modifies a noun (singular or plural) delimited by a numeral.
    a staggering three million dollars
    The holidays are a mere one week away.
  9. One; someone named; used before a person's name, suggesting that the speaker knows little about the person other than the name.[4]
    We've received an interesting letter from a Mrs. Miggins of London.
  10. Used before an adjective modifying a person's name.
    • 2018, “Rwandan court drops all charges against opposition figure”, in Associated Press:
      "I will continue my campaign to fight for the rights of all Rwandans," a surprised but happy Rwigara told reporters after celebrating.
  11. Someone or something like; similar to;[3] Used before a proper noun to create an example out of it.
    The center of the village was becoming a Times Square.
    The man is a regular Romeo.
Usage notes[edit]
  • In standard English, the article a is used before consonant sounds, while an is used before vowel sounds; for more, see the usage notes about an.
Derived terms[edit]
Translations[edit]
See also[edit]

Etymology 3[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Preposition[edit]

a

  1. To do with separation; In, into. [from before 1150][2]
    Torn a pieces.
  2. To do with time; Each, per, in, on, by. Often occurs between two nouns, where the first noun occurs at the end of a verbal phrase.[from before 1150][2]
    I brush my teeth twice a day.
  3. To do with status; In. [from before 1150][2]
  4. (archaic) To do with position or direction; In, on, at, by, towards, onto. [from before 1150][2]
    Stand a tiptoe.
  5. (archaic) To do with process, with a passive verb; In the course of, experiencing. [from before 1150][2]
  6. (archaic) To do with an action, an active verb; Engaged in. [16th c.][2]
  7. (archaic) To do with an action/movement; To, into. [16th c.][2]
  8. (obsolete) To do with method; In, with. [from before 1150][2]
  9. (obsolete) To do with role or capacity; In. [from before 1150][2]
Usage notes[edit]
  • (position, direction): Can also be attached without a hyphen, as aback, ahorse, afoot. See a-
  • (separation): Can also be attached without hyphen, as asunder. See a-
  • (status): Can also be attached without hyphen, as afloat, awake. See a-.
  • (process): Can also be attached with or without hyphen, as a-changing
See also[edit]

Etymology 4[edit]

From Middle English a, ha contraction of have, or haven.

Alternative forms[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Verb[edit]

a

  1. (archaic or slang) Have. [between 1150 and 1350, continued in some use until 1650; used again after 1950]
    I'd a come, if you'd a asked.
    • 1884, Robert Holland, M.R.A.C., A Glossary of Words Used in the County of Chester, volume Part I--A to F., London: English Dialect Society, page 1:
      Oi'd a gen im a clout, if oi'd been theer.
    • c. 1599–1602 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Hamlet, Prince of Denmarke”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies [] (First Folio), London: [] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, (please specify the act number in uppercase Roman numerals, and the scene number in lowercase Roman numerals):
      So would I a done by yonder ſunne
      ?And thou hadſt not come to my bed.
Usage notes[edit]
  • Now often attached to preceding auxiliary verb. See -a.
Derived terms[edit]

Etymology 5[edit]

From Middle English a, a reduced form of he (he)/ha (he), heo (she)/ha (she), ha (it), and hie, hie (they).

Alternative forms[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Pronoun[edit]

a

  1. (obsolete outside England and Scotland dialects) He, she, they: the third-person singular or plural nominative.[4]
    • 1855, Kingsley, W. Ho!, page 120 (edition of 1889):
      He've a got a great venture on hand, but what a [it] be he tell'th no man.
    • 1864, Tennyson, N. Farmer, Old Style, st. 2:
      Doctors, they knaws nowt, fur a [they] says what's nawways true.
    1. (obsolete outside England and Scotland dialects) He, the third-person singular nominative.
      • 1598–1599 (first performance), William Shakespeare, “Much Adoe about Nothing”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies [] (First Folio), London: [] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act III, scene ii]:
        a’ brushes his hat o’ mornings.
      • 1795, Peter Pindar, The Royal Visit to Exeter, a Political Epistle: by John Ploughshare ... published by Peter Pindar, Esq, page 5:
        Well! in a come [in he came]—KING GEORGE to town, / With doust and zweat az netmeg brown, / The hosses all in smoke;
      • 1860, Kite, Sng. Sol., ii, 16:
        A do veed amang th' lilies.
      • 1864, Tennyson, N. Farmer, Old Style, st. 7, version of 1917, Raymond Macdonald Alden, Alfred Tennyson, how to Know Him, page 226:
        "The amoighty's a taakin' o' you to 'issén, my friend," a said, []
    2. (obsolete outside England and Scotland dialects) She, the third-person singular nominative.
      • 1790, Grose, MS. add. (M.):
        A wanted me to go with her.
      • 1876, Bound, Prov.:
        Did a do it!
      • 1883, Hardy, Tover, page 124 (edition of 1895):
        A's getting wambling on her pins [shaky on her legs].

Etymology 6[edit]

From Middle English of, with apocope of the final f and vowel reduction.

Alternative forms[edit]

  • o', o (preposition)

Pronunciation[edit]

Preposition[edit]

a

  1. (archaic or slang) Of.
    The name of John a Gaunt.
Usage notes[edit]
  • Often attached without a hyphen to preceding word.

Etymology 7[edit]

From Northern Middle English aw, alteration of all.

Alternative forms[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Adverb[edit]

a (not comparable)

  1. (chiefly Scotland) All. [from ca. 1350—1470]

Adjective[edit]

a (not comparable)

  1. (chiefly Scotland) All. [from ca. 1350—1470]

Etymology 8[edit]

Symbols

Symbol[edit]

a

  1. Distance from leading edge to aerodynamic center.
  2. specific absorption coefficient
  3. specific rotation
  4. allele (recessive)

Etymology 9[edit]

Adverb[edit]

a

  1. (crosswords) across
    Do you have the answer for 23a?
  2. (chiefly US) Alternative spelling of a.m. (ante meridiem) or am

Etymology 10[edit]

Particle[edit]

a

  1. Alternative form of -a (empty syllable added to songs, poetry, verse and other speech)
    • 2001, Louis F. Newcomb, Car Salesman: A Legacy, iUniverse (→ISBN), page 91:
      “I show a you right a here I can fuck a you.” “Is she crazy?” I asked Wyman.

Etymology 11[edit]

Borrowed from Russian а (a).

Noun[edit]

a

  1. The name of the Cyrillic script letter А / а.

Translations[edit]

Etymology 12[edit]

Interjection[edit]

a

  1. ah; er (sound of hesitation)
    • 1847 January – 1848 July, William Makepeace Thackeray, Vanity Fair [], London: Bradbury and Evans [], published 1848, →OCLC:
      "We will resume yesterday's discourse, young ladies," said he, "and you shall each read a page by turns; so that Miss a—Miss Short may have an opportunity of hearing you"; and the poor girls began to spell a long dismal sermon delivered at Bethesda Chapel, Liverpool, on behalf of the mission for the Chickasaw Indians.

Etymology 13[edit]

Abbreviations.

  1. (stenoscript) a word-initial letter ⟨a⟩.
  2. (stenoscript) the long vowel /eɪ/ at the end of a word, or before a final consonant that is not /dʒ, v, z/. (Note: the final consonant is not written; [ɛə˞] counts as /eɪr/.)
    Thus the word a, plus its inflection an.
  3. (stenoscript) the word a.m.
  4. (stenoscript) the prefix ad-.

Quotations[edit]

Additional quotations for any terms on this page may be found at Citations:a.

References[edit]

  1. 1.0 1.1 Gove, Philip Babcock, (1976)
  2. 2.00 2.01 2.02 2.03 2.04 2.05 2.06 2.07 2.08 2.09 Brown, Lesley, (2003)
  3. 3.0 3.1 Lindberg, Christine A. (2007)
  4. 4.0 4.1 Oxford University Press, (2023)

Further reading[edit]

Abau[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

IPA(key): /a/

Noun[edit]

a

  1. house

Afar[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Determiner[edit]

á

  1. this, these (masculine)

Derived terms[edit]

See also[edit]

See Template:aa-demonstrative determiners.

References[edit]

  • E. M. Parker; R. J. Hayward (1985), “a”, in An Afar-English-French dictionary (with Grammatical Notes in English), University of London, →ISBN
  • Mohamed Hassan Kamil (2015) L’afar: description grammaticale d’une langue couchitique (Djibouti, Erythrée et Ethiopie)[4], Paris: Université Sorbonne Paris Cité (doctoral thesis)

Albanian[edit]

Etymology 1[edit]

Alternative forms[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Conjunction[edit]

a

  1. or
  2. there

Etymology 2[edit]

From Proto-Albanian *(h)an, from Proto-Indo-European *h₂en (there). Cognate with Latin an (yes, perhaps). Interrogative particle, usually used proclitically in simple sentences.

Pronunciation[edit]

Particle[edit]

a

  1. probably, perhaps
  2. whether

Letter[edit]

a (lower case, upper case A)

  1. The first letter of the Standard Albanian Latin-script alphabet.

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ Orel, Vladimir E. (1998), “a part. ('whether'), conj. ('or')”, in Albanian Etymological Dictionary, Leiden; Boston; Köln: Brill, →ISBN, page 1
  2. ^ Mann, S. E. (1948), “a”, in An Historical Albanian–English Dictionary, London: Longmans, Green & Co., page 1

Further reading[edit]

  • “a”, in FGJSSH: Fjalor i gjuhës së sotme shqipe [Dictionary of the modern Albanian language]‎[5] (in Albanian), 1980
  • a”, in FGJSH: Fjalor i gjuhës shqipe [Dictionary of the Albanian language] (in Albanian), 2006

Ama[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Noun[edit]

a

  1. tree

Anguthimri[edit]

Verb[edit]

a

  1. (transitive, Mpakwithi) to pull

References[edit]

  • Terry Crowley, The Mpakwithi dialect of Anguthimri (1981), page 184

Aragonese[edit]

Etymology[edit]

From Latin illa.

Article[edit]

a f sg

  1. the
    a luenga aragonesathe Aragonese language

Asturian[edit]

Etymology[edit]

From Latin ad.

Pronunciation[edit]

Preposition[edit]

a

  1. to, towards

Derived terms[edit]

Noun[edit]

a f

  1. a (the name of the letter A, a)

Azerbaijani[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Letter[edit]

a (lower case, upper case A)

  1. The first letter of the Azerbaijani alphabet, written in the Latin script.

See also[edit]

Bambara[edit]

Article[edit]

a

  1. the (definite article).

Interjection[edit]

a

  1. ah (expression of surprise)
  2. eh (expression of reluctance)

Pronoun[edit]

a

  1. they, them (plural)
  2. he, she, they (singular)

Synonyms[edit]

  • (they): u

Basque[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Letter[edit]

a (lower case, upper case A)

  1. The first letter of the Basque alphabet, written in the Latin script.

See also[edit]

Noun[edit]

a (indeclinable)

  1. The name of the Latin-script letter A.

See also[edit]

Bavarian[edit]

Etymology 1[edit]

Cognate with German ein and eine.

Pronunciation[edit]

Article[edit]

a

  1. a
See also[edit]
  • oa (one, determiner)

Etymology 2[edit]

Unstressed form of ea

Pronunciation[edit]

Pronoun[edit]

a

  1. he
See also[edit]

Etymology 3[edit]

Cognate with German auch.

Adverb[edit]

a

  1. Alternative form of aa: also, too, as well

Belizean Creole[edit]

Preposition[edit]

a

  1. of

References[edit]

  • Crosbie, Paul, ed. (2007), Kriol-Inglish Dikshineri: English-Kriol Dictionary. Belize City: Belize Kriol Project, p. 19.

Big Nambas[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Preposition[edit]

a

  1. in

References[edit]

Breton[edit]

Etymology 1[edit]

From Proto-Brythonic *o, from Proto-Indo-European *h₂pó.

Pronunciation[edit]

Preposition[edit]

a (triggers soft mutation)

  1. from (expresses origin)
    tud a Vrestpeople from Brest
  2. of (indicates an amount)
    un tamm brav a giga nice piece of meat
  3. of (expresses a quality)
    ur plac’h a enora girl of honour
  4. after certain adjectives or adverbs expressing quantity
    ur voutailh leun a sistra bottle full of cider
  5. after ordinal numbers with a plural noun
    tri a vugalethree children
  6. used in negative sentences with the grammatical object
    nʼem eus ket ken a vutunI donʼt have any more tobacco
  7. before the infinitive after certain verbs like paouez, mirout, diwall, c'hwitañ
    paouezet eo ar glav a gouezhañit has stopped raining [lit. the rain has stopped falling]
  8. after substantivized adjectives used as nouns
    ur vrav a blacʼha pretty girl
  9. combined with a personal pronoun
    gwelet em boa acʼhanoutI saw you
    an den a gomzan anezhañthe man Iʼm talking about
Inflection[edit]

Etymology 2[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Particle[edit]

a (triggers soft mutation)

  1. preverbal particle used when
    1. the subject precedes the verb
      ar mor a zo glasthe sea is blue
    2. the object precedes the verb
      an den-se a glevanI hear that man

Pronoun[edit]

a (triggers soft mutation)

  1. (relative) that, which, who (used in 'direct' relative clauses, i.e. where the pronoun refers to the subject or the direct object of an inflected verb)
    an hini a garanthe one whom I love

Cameroon Pidgin[edit]

Pronoun[edit]

a

  1. Alternative spelling of I (1st person singular subject personal pronoun)

Catalan[edit]

Etymology 1[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Letter[edit]

a (lower case, upper case A)

  1. The first letter of the Catalan alphabet, written in the Latin script.
Derived terms[edit]
See also[edit]

Etymology 2[edit]

From Latin ad.

Pronunciation[edit]

Preposition[edit]

a

  1. in, at; indicating a particular time or place
    Sóc a Barcelona.
    I am in Barcelona.
  2. to; indicating movement towards a particular place
    Vaig a Barcelona.
    I'm going to Barcelona.
  3. to; indicating a target or indirect object
    Escric una carta a la meva àvia.
    I'm writing my grandmother a letter.
  4. per
  5. by
    dia a dia.
    day by day.
Usage notes[edit]
  • When the preposition a is followed by a masculine definite article, el or els, it is contracted with it to the forms al and als respectively. If el would be elided to the form l’ because it is before a word beginning with a vowel, the elision to a l’ takes precedence over contracting to al.

The same occurs with the salat article es, to form as except where es would be elided to s’.

Derived terms[edit]

Chayuco Mixtec[edit]

Etymology[edit]

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Conjunction[edit]

a

  1. or

References[edit]

  • Pensinger, Brenda J. (1974) Diccionario mixteco-español, español-mixteco (Serie de vocabularios y diccionarios indígenas “Mariano Silva y Aceves”; 18)‎[6] (in Spanish), México, D.F.: El Instituto Lingüístico de Verano en coordinación con la Secretaría de Educación Pública a través de la Dirección General de Educación Extraescolar en el Medio Indígena, pages 3, 110

Chibcha[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Noun[edit]

a

  1. open mouth
  2. smell, taste

References[edit]

  • Gómez Aldana D. F., Análisis morfológico del Vocabulario 158 de la Biblioteca Nacional de Colombia. Grupo de Investigación Muysccubun. 2013.

Choctaw[edit]

Conjunction[edit]

a

  1. yes

Chuukese[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Pronoun[edit]

a

  1. he
  2. she
  3. it

Adjective[edit]

a

  1. he is
  2. she is
  3. it is

Related terms[edit]

Present and past tense Negative tense Future Negative future Distant future Negative determinate
Singular First person ua use upwe usap upwap ute
Second person ka, ke kose, kese kopwe, kepwe kosap, kesap kopwap, kepwap kote, kete
Third person a ese epwe esap epwap ete
Plural First person aua (exclusive)
sia (inclusive)
ause (exclusive)
sise (inclusive)
aupwe (exclusive)
sipwe (inclusive)
ausap (exclusive)
sisap (inclusive)
aupwap (exclusive)
sipwap (inclusive)
aute (exclusive)
site (inclusive)
Second person oua ouse oupwe ousap oupwap oute
Third person ra, re rese repwe resap repwap rete


Cimbrian[edit]

Alternative forms[edit]

  • an (Sette Comuni)

Etymology[edit]

From Middle High German ein, from Old High German ein, from Proto-West Germanic *ain.

Article[edit]

a (oblique masculine an)

  1. (Luserna) a, an
    Maria iz a lavròunaren.Maria is a Lavaronese.

References[edit]

Coatepec Nahuatl[edit]

Noun[edit]

a

  1. water

Cora[edit]

Particle[edit]

a

  1. outside
  2. out of view (from the speaker)
  3. entering a shallow domain; entering a domain in a shallow or restricted manner
    atyásuuna káasu hece
    The water is pouring into the (shallow) pan.

Antonyms[edit]

  • u (inside; within view)

References[edit]

  • Eugene Casad; Ronald Langacker (1985), “'Inside' and 'outside' in Cora grammar”, in International Journal of American Linguistics

Cornish[edit]

Etymology 1[edit]

Onomatopoeic

Pronunciation[edit]

Interjection[edit]

a

  1. ah

Etymology 2[edit]

Compare Welsh a

Pronunciation[edit]

Particle[edit]

a (triggers soft mutation)

  1. Inserted before the verb when a subject or direct object precedes the verb

Etymology 3[edit]

From Proto-Brythonic *o, from Proto-Celtic *ɸo, from Proto-Indo-European *h₂pó.

Pronunciation[edit]

Preposition[edit]

a (triggers soft mutation)

  1. of (expressing separation, origin, composition/substance or a quality)
  2. of (between a preceding large number and a following plural noun to express quantity)
  3. from (indicating provenance)

Inflection[edit]

Corsican[edit]

Etymology[edit]

From the earlier la.

Pronunciation[edit]

Article[edit]

a f (masculine u, masculine plural i, feminine plural e)

  1. the (feminine)

Usage notes[edit]

  • Before a vowel, a turns into l'

Pronoun[edit]

a f

  1. her, it (direct object)

Usage notes[edit]

  • Before a vowel, a turns into l'

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  • a” in INFCOR: Banca di dati di a lingua corsa

Czech[edit]

Etymology[edit]

Inherited from Old Czech a, from Proto-Slavic *a, from Proto-Balto-Slavic .

Pronunciation[edit]

Conjunction[edit]

a

  1. and

Further reading[edit]

  • a in Příruční slovník jazyka českého, 1935–1957
  • a in Slovník spisovného jazyka českého, 1960–1971, 1989

Dakota[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

IPA(key): /a/

Letter[edit]

a (uppercase A)

  1. This term needs a translation to English. Please help out and add a translation, then remove the text {{rfdef}}.

See also[edit]

Dalmatian[edit]

Etymology[edit]

From Latin ad.

Preposition[edit]

a

  1. to
  2. at

Danish[edit]

Etymology 1[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Letter[edit]

a (lower case, upper case A)

  1. The first letter of the Danish alphabet, written in the Latin script.
See also[edit]

Etymology 2[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Noun[edit]

a n (singular definite a'et, plural indefinite a'er)

  1. The name of the letter A or a.
Inflection[edit]

Etymology 3[edit]

Alternative forms[edit]

  • à (unofficial but common)

Pronunciation[edit]

Preposition[edit]

a

  1. of, of...each, each containing
  2. at
  3. to, or

Etymology 4[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Verb[edit]

a

  1. imperative of ae

Dutch[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Etymology 1[edit]

Letter[edit]

a (lower case, upper case A)

  1. The first letter of the Dutch alphabet, written in the Latin script.
See also[edit]

Etymology 2[edit]

From Middle Dutch â, from Old Dutch ā, from Proto-Germanic *ahwō.

Alternative forms[edit]

  • aa (especially in names)
  • ie

Noun[edit]

a f (plural a's, diminutive aatje)

  1. (archaic) a stream or water
Related terms[edit]

Further reading[edit]

Etymology 3[edit]

From Middle Dutch jou, from Old Dutch *jū, a northern (Frisian?) variant of *iu, from Proto-Germanic *iwwiz, a West Germanic variant of *izwiz. Doublet of u.

Pronoun[edit]

a

  1. (Brabant) you
Synonyms[edit]

Egyptian[edit]

Romanization[edit]

a

  1. Manuel de Codage transliteration of .

Emilian[edit]

Etymology[edit]

From Latin ego (I).

Pronunciation[edit]

Pronoun[edit]

a (personal, nominative case)

  1. I
  2. we
  3. you (plural)

Alternative forms[edit]

  • Becomes aj- before a vowel (proclitic).
  • Becomes -ja when acting as an enclitic.

Related terms[edit]

Esperanto[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Letter[edit]

a (lower case, upper case A)

  1. The first letter of the Esperanto alphabet, written in the Latin script.

See also[edit]

Noun[edit]

a (accusative singular a-on, plural a-oj, accusative plural a-ojn)

  1. The name of the Latin script letter A/a.

See also[edit]

Estonian[edit]

Etymology 1[edit]

 a on Estonian Wikipedia

Pronunciation[edit]

Letter[edit]

a (lower case, upper case A)

  1. The first letter of the Estonian alphabet, called aa and written in the Latin script.
See also[edit]

Noun[edit]

a (genitive a or a', partitive a-d or a'd)

  1. The letter a (the first letter of the Estonian alphabet)
  2. (music) A (note)
    Synonym: la
Declension[edit]
Declension of a (ÕS type 26i/idee, no gradation)
singular plural
nominative a- a-d
accusative nom.
gen. a-
genitive a-de
partitive a-d a-id
a-sid
illative a-sse a-desse
a-isse
inessive a-s a-des
a-is
elative a-st a-dest
a-ist
allative a-le a-dele
a-ile
adessive a-l a-del
a-il
ablative a-lt a-delt
a-ilt
translative a-ks a-deks
a-iks
terminative a-ni a-deni
essive a-na a-dena
abessive a-ta a-deta
comitative a-ga a-dega

(music):

Declension of a (ÕS type 26i/idee, no gradation)
singular plural
nominative a' a'd
accusative nom.
gen. a'
genitive a'de
partitive a'd a'id
a'sid
illative a'sse a'desse
a'isse
inessive a's a'des
a'is
elative a'st a'dest
a'ist
allative a'le a'dele
a'ile
adessive a'l a'del
a'il
ablative a'lt a'delt
a'ilt
translative a'ks a'deks
a'iks
terminative a'ni a'deni
essive a'na a'dena
abessive a'ta a'deta
comitative a'ga a'dega

Etymology 2[edit]

Clipping of aga. Probably influenced by Russian а (a).

Conjunction[edit]

a

  1. (colloquial, in fast speech) but

Etymology 3[edit]

Noun[edit]

a

  1. Abbreviation of aasta.
  2. Abbreviation of aar.

References[edit]

  • a in Sõnaveeb (Eesti Keele Instituut)
  • a”, in [EKSS] Eesti keele seletav sõnaraamat [Descriptive Dictionary of the Estonian Language] (online version, in Estonian), Tallinn: Eesti Keele Sihtasutus (Estonian Language Foundation), 2009

Fala[edit]

Etymology 1[edit]

From Old Galician-Portuguese á, from Latin illa (that).

Article[edit]

a f sg (plural as, masculine u or o, masculine plural us or os)

  1. Feminine singular definite article; the
    • 2000, Domingo Frades Gaspar, Vamus a falal: Notas pâ coñocel y platical en nosa fala, Editora regional da Extremadura, Chapter 1: Lengua Española:
      A grandeda da lengua española é indiscotibli, i sei estudio, utilización defensa debin sel algo consostancial a nos, []
      The greatness of the Spanish language is unquestionable, and its study, use and defense must be something consubstantial to us, []

Pronoun[edit]

a

  1. Third person singular feminine accusative pronoun; her
See also[edit]

Etymology 2[edit]

From Old Galician-Portuguese a, from Latin ad (to).

Preposition[edit]

a

  1. to
    • 2000, Domingo Frades Gaspar, Vamus a falal: Notas pâ coñocel y platical en nosa fala, Editora regional da Extremadura, Chapter 1: Lengua Española:
      A grandeda da lengua española é indiscotibli, i sei estudio, utilización defensa debin sel algo consostancial a nos, []
      The greatness of the Spanish language is unquestionable, and its study, use and defense must be something consubstantial to us, []

References[edit]

  • Valeš, Miroslav (2021) Diccionariu de A Fala: lagarteiru, mañegu, valverdeñu (web)[7], 2nd edition, Minde, Portugal: CIDLeS, published 2022, →ISBN

Faroese[edit]

Etymology[edit]

From Latin a.

Pronunciation[edit]

Letter[edit]

a (upper case A)

  1. The first letter of the Faroese alphabet, written in the Latin script.

See also[edit]

Finnish[edit]

Etymology 1[edit]

The Finnish orthography using the Latin script was based on those of Swedish, German and Latin, and was first used in the mid-16th century. No earlier script is known. See the Wikipedia article on Finnish for more information, and a for information on the development of the glyph itself.

Letter[edit]

a (lower case, upper case A)

  1. The first letter of the Finnish alphabet, written in the Latin script.
See also[edit]

Etymology 2[edit]

German musical notation.

Noun[edit]

a

  1. (music) A (note)
Usage notes[edit]

Capitalized for the great octave or any octave below that, or in names of major keys; not capitalized for the small octave or any octave above that, or in names of minor keys.

Declension[edit]

Franco-Provençal[edit]

Etymology[edit]

From Latin ad.

Pronunciation[edit]

Pronoun[edit]

a

  1. to
  2. at

French[edit]

Etymology 1[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Letter[edit]

a (lower case, upper case A)

  1. The first letter of the French alphabet, written in the Latin script.

Noun[edit]

a m or f (plural as)

  1. a, the name of the Latin-script letter A

Derived terms[edit]

Etymology 2[edit]

Quebec eye-dialect spelling of elle.

Pronunciation[edit]

Pronoun[edit]

a f

  1. (Quebec, colloquial) alternative form of elle (she)
    C’te fille-là, a’a l’air cute.
    That girl, she looks cute.

Etymology 3[edit]

From Old French a, at from Vulgar Latin *at, from Latin habet.

Pronunciation[edit]

Verb[edit]

a

  1. third-person singular present indicative of avoir
    Elle a un chat.
    She has a cat.

See also[edit]

Further reading[edit]

Fula[edit]

Etymology 1[edit]

Letter[edit]

a (lower case, upper case A)

  1. The first letter of the Fula alphabet, written in the Latin script.
Usage notes[edit]
See also[edit]

Etymology 2[edit]

Pronoun[edit]

a

  1. you (second person singular subject pronoun; short form)
Usage notes[edit]
  • Common to all varieties of Fula (Fulfulde / Pulaar / Pular).
  • Used in all conjugations except the affirmative non-accomplished, where the long form is used instead.
See also[edit]
  • aɗa (second person singular subject pronoun; long form), hiɗa (variant used in the Pular dialect of Futa Jalon)
  • aan (emphatic form) (Maasina)
  • an (emphatic form) (Pular)
  • maaɗa (second person singular possessive pronoun (Adamawa))
  • -maa (second person singular dependent pronoun (Adamawa))

Galician[edit]

Etymology 1[edit]

From Latin ad (to, toward).

Pronunciation[edit]

IPA(key): /a̝/

Preposition[edit]

a

  1. to, toward; indicating direction of motion
  2. introducing an indirect object
  3. used to indicate the time of an action
  4. (with de) to, until; used to indicate the end of a range
    de cinco a oitofrom five to eight
  5. by, on, by means of; expresses a mode of action
    aon foot
  6. for; indicates price or cost
Usage notes[edit]

The preposition a regularly forms contractions when it precedes the definite article o, a, os, and as. For example, a o ("to the") contracts to ao or ó, and a a ("to the") contracts to á.

Derived terms[edit]
at/to + the table
- Singular Plural
Masculine ao (ó) aos (ós)
Feminine á ás

Etymology 2[edit]

From Old Galician-Portuguese a, from Latin illa, feminine of ille (that).

Pronunciation[edit]

IPA(key): /a̝/

Article[edit]

a f (masculine singular o, feminine plural as, masculine plural os)

  1. (definite) the
Usage notes[edit]

The definite article o (in all its forms) regularly forms contractions when it follows the prepositions a (to), con (with), de (of, from), and en (in). For example, con a (with the) contracts to coa, and en a (in the) contracts to na.

Also, the definite article presents a second form that could be represented as <-lo/-la/-los/-las>, or either lack any specific representation. Its origin is in the assimilation of the last consonant of words ended in -s or -r, due to sandhi, with the /l/ present in the article in pre-Galician-Portuguese period. So Vou comer o caldo or Vou come-lo caldo are representations of /ˈβowˈkomelo̝ˈkaldo̝/ ("I'm going to have my soup"). This phenomenon, rare in Portuguese, is already documented in 13th century Medieval Galician texts, as the Cantigas de Santa Maria.[1]

Derived terms[edit]

Etymology 3[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

IPA(key): /ˈa/

Noun[edit]

a m (plural as)

  1. a (name of the letter A, a)

Etymology 4[edit]

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

Pronoun[edit]

a

  1. accusative of ela
Usage notes[edit]

Due to sandhi, the accusative form o (in all its forms) regularly changes to -lo after verbal forms ended in r or s, and to -no after verbal forms ended in a semivowel:

  • Eu apagueina 'I quenched it' < apaguei‿a
  • Ti apagáchela 'You quenched it' < apagaches‿a
  • El apagouna 'He quenched it' < apagou‿a
  • Nós apagámola 'We quenched it' < apagamos‿a
  • Temos de apagala 'We must quench it' < apagar‿a

References[edit]

  1. ^ Vaz Leão, Ângela (2000), “Questões de linguagem nas Cantigas de Santa Maria, de Afonso X”, in Scripta[1], volume 4, issue 7, →DOI, retrieved 16 November 2017, pages 11-24

German[edit]

Etymology 1[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Letter[edit]

a (lower case, upper case A)

  1. The first letter of the German alphabet, written in the Latin script.

Noun[edit]

a n (strong, genitive a or as, plural a or as)

  1. Alternative form of A

Etymology 2[edit]

Noun[edit]

a

  1. Abbreviation of a-Moll.
  2. Abbreviation of Ar.

Gilbertese[edit]

Etymology[edit]

From Proto-Oceanic *pat, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *əpat, from Proto-Austronesian *Səpat.

Pronunciation[edit]

Numeral[edit]

a

  1. four

Gothic[edit]

Romanization[edit]

a

  1. Romanization of 𐌰

Grass Koiari[edit]

Pronoun[edit]

a

  1. you (singular)

References[edit]

  • 2010, Terry Crowley & Claire Bowern, An Introduction to Historical Linguistics, fourth edition, Oxford University Press, →ISBN, page 142.

Gun[edit]

Etymology[edit]

Cognates include Fon à.

Pronunciation[edit]

Pronoun[edit]

à

  1. you (second-person singular subject pronoun)

See also[edit]

Gungbe personal pronouns
Number Person Emphatic Pronoun Subject Pronoun Object Pronoun Possessive Determiner
Singular First nyɛ́, yẹ́n ùn, n mi , ṣié
Second jɛ̀, jẹ̀, yẹ̀, hiẹ̀ à tòwè
Third éɔ̀, úɔ̀, éwọ̀ é è étɔ̀n, étọ̀n
Plural First mílɛ́, mílẹ́ mítɔ̀n, mítọ̀n
Second mìlɛ́, mìlẹ́ mìtɔ̀n, mìtọ̀n
Third yélɛ́, yélẹ́ yétɔ̀n, yétọ̀n

Haitian Creole[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

IPA(key): /a/

Article[edit]

a

  1. the, definite article

Usage notes[edit]

This term only follows words that end with an oral (non-nasal) consonant and an oral vowel in that order, and can only modify singular nouns.

See also[edit]

Hawaiian[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Conjunction[edit]

a

  1. and (used between sentences)
  2. until, up to

Preposition[edit]

a

  1. of, belonging to

Usage notes[edit]

  • Used for acquired possessions, while o is used for possessions that are inherited, out of personal control, and for things that can be got into (houses, clothes, cars).

Hokkien[edit]

For pronunciation and definitions of a – see .
(This term is the pe̍h-ōe-jī form of ).

Hungarian[edit]

Etymology 1[edit]

See az.

Pronunciation[edit]

Article[edit]

a (definite)

  1. the
    a hölgythe lady
  2. (before some time phrases) this
    a héten(during) this week
    a télen(in) this winter
Usage notes[edit]

Used before words starting with a consonant.

Related terms[edit]
  • az (for words starting with a vowel sound)

Pronoun[edit]

a (demonstrative)

  1. (in reduplicated constructions formed with postpositions) that
    A mellett a ház mellett vártam rá.I waited for him/her next to that house.

Determiner[edit]

a (demonstrative)

  1. (rare, only in consonant-initial fixed phrases, with zero article) Alternative form of az (that).
    Foglalja össze, miről szóltak az a heti beszédek és leckék.[1]Summarize what that week’s sermons and lessons were about.
    November 12-én, az a havi frissítőkedden jelenhet meg.It may be released on November 12th, on the Patch Tuesday of that month.
    Kérjük szíves tájékoztatásukat a tekintetben, hogy… (abban a tekintetben, see az)We kindly request your information in that [= the] aspect…
    amondó vagyok, hogy…I am of the opinion that…, what/all I can / want to say is that… (literally, “I am that-sayer/-saying…”)

Etymology 2[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

  • (letter or phoneme itself): IPA(key): [ˈɒː][2]
  • (identifier or musical note): IPA(key): [ˈaː] (in the names of minor scales; see also A)

Letter[edit]

a (lower case, upper case A)

  1. The first letter of the Hungarian alphabet, written in the Latin script.
  2. (music) designation of the sixth note from C and the corresponding tone
Derived terms[edit]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a heti at e-nyelv.hu
  2. ^ Siptár, Péter and Miklós Törkenczy. The Phonology of Hungarian. The Phonology of the World’s Languages. Oxford University Press, 2007. →ISBN, p. 280

Further reading[edit]

Icelandic[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Letter[edit]

a (upper case A)

  1. The first letter of the Icelandic alphabet, written in the Latin script.

Noun[edit]

a ?

  1. The name of the Latin-script letter A.

See also[edit]

Ido[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

  • (context pronunciation, letter name) IPA(key): /a/

Letter[edit]

a (lower case, upper case A)

  1. The first letter of the Ido alphabet, written in the Latin script.

See also[edit]

Noun[edit]

a (plural a-i)

  1. The name of the Latin script letter A/a.

See also[edit]

Preposition[edit]

a

  1. Apocopic form of ad

Related terms[edit]

  • e (and)
  • o (or)

Igbo[edit]

Letter[edit]

a (upper case A, lower case a)

  1. The first letter of the Igbo alphabet, written in the Latin script.

Etymology 1[edit]

Alternative forms[edit]

  • e (neutral tongue position)

Pronunciation[edit]

Pronoun[edit]

a

  1. (indefinite) somebody, one, they, people (an unspecified individual).
    A gwara ya ka ọ bịa.
    He/she was told to come.
Usage notes[edit]
  • Often gets translated into English with the passive voice.
See also[edit]

Etymology 2[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Determiner[edit]

a

  1. this.
Related terms[edit]

Indo-Portuguese[edit]

Etymology[edit]

From Portuguese a.

Pronunciation[edit]

  • (Sri Lankan Creole) IPA(key): /a/, /ə/

Preposition[edit]

a

  1. to
    • 1883, Hugo Schuchardt, Kreolische Studien, volume 3 (overall work in German):
      [] , que da-cá su quião que ta pertencê a êll.
      [] , to give him his share which belongs to him.

Indonesian[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

  • (letter name): IPA(key): /ˈa/, [ˈa]
  • (phoneme): IPA(key): /a/

Letter[edit]

a (lower case, upper case A)

  1. The first letter of the Indonesian alphabet, called id and written in the Latin script.
  2. The name of the Latin-script letter A/a.

See also[edit]

Further reading[edit]

Ingrian[edit]

Etymology[edit]

Borrowed from Russian а (a).

Pronunciation[edit]

Conjunction[edit]

a

  1. and, but
    • 1936, N. A. Iljin and V. I. Junus, Bukvari iƶoroin șkouluja vart, Leningrad: Riikin Ucebno-pedagogiceskoi Izdateljstva, page 17:
      A siä Jaakko, kuhu määt?
      And you Jaakko, where are you going?
    • 1936, L. G. Terehova, V. G. Erdeli, translated by Mihailov and P. I. Maksimov, Geografia: oppikirja iƶoroin alkușkoulun kolmatta klaassaa vart (ensimäine osa), Leningrad: Riikin Ucebno-Pedagogiceskoi Izdateljstva, page 7:
      keskipäivääl hää [päivyt] on kaikkiin ylemmääl, a siis alkaa laskiissa.
      on midday it [the Sun] is highest, and then it starts to descend.

References[edit]

  • Ruben E. Nirvi (1971) Inkeroismurteiden Sanakirja, Helsinki: Suomalais-Ugrilainen Seura, page 1
  • Arvo Laanest (1997) Isuri keele Hevaha murde sõnastik, Eesti Keele Instituut, page 15

Interlingua[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Preposition[edit]

a

  1. to, at
  2. to, for (indicating purpose)
    sala a attenderwaiting room

Derived terms[edit]

Inupiaq[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Interjection[edit]

a

  1. listen, hark
  2. oops (used to acknowledge an error)
  3. oh (used to express surprise)

Irish[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Etymology 1[edit]

From Old Irish a, from Proto-Celtic *esyo (the final vowel triggering lenition), feminine Proto-Celtic *esyās (the final -s triggering h-prothesis), plural Proto-Celtic *ēsom (the final nasal triggering eclipsis), all from the genitive forms of Proto-Indo-European *éy. Cognate with Welsh ei.

Determiner[edit]

a (triggers lenition)

  1. his, its
    a athair agus a mháthairhis father and mother
    Chaill an t-éan a chleití.
    The bird lost its feathers.

Determiner[edit]

a (triggers h-prothesis)

  1. her, its
    a hathair agus a máthairher father and mother
    Bhris an mheaig a heiteog.
    The magpie broke its wing.

Determiner[edit]

a (triggers eclipsis)

  1. their
    a n-athair agus a máthairtheir father and mother
    a dtithetheir houses
    a n-ainmneachatheir names
  2. (Connacht) our
  3. (Connacht) your (plural)
See also[edit]

Determiner[edit]

a (triggers lenition)

  1. how (used with an abstract noun)
    A ghéire a labhair sí!
    How sharply she spoke!
    A fheabhas atá sé!
    How good it is!

Etymology 2[edit]

A reduced form of older do (itself a reanalysis of do used in past tenses, and also present in early modern verbs like do-bheirim (I give), do-chím (I see)), or from the preverb a- in early modern verbs like a-tú (I am), a-deirim (I say) in relative clauses.

Particle[edit]

a (triggers lenition except of d’ and of past autonomous forms)

  1. introduces a direct relative clause, takes the independent form of an irregular verb
    an fear a chuireann síolthe man who sows seed
    an síol a chuireann an fearthe seed that the man sows
    an síol a cuireadhthe seed that was sown
    nuair a bhí mé ógwhen I was young
    an cat a d'ól an bainnethe cat that drank the milk

References[edit]

  • Gerald O’Nolan (1920) Studies in Modern Irish[8], volume 1, pages 89, 93–94

Etymology 3[edit]

From Old Irish a (that, which the relative particle used after prepositions), reanalyzed as an independent indirect relative particle from forms like ar a (on which, on whom), (to which, to whom), or early modern le a (with which, with whom), agá (at which, at whom) when prepositional pronouns started to be repeated in such clauses (eg. don té agá mbíon cloidheamh (…) aige, daoine agá mbíonn grádh aco do Dhia). Compare the forms used in Munster instead: go (from agá (at which)) and na (from i n-a (in which), go n-a (with which), ria n-a (before which) and later lena (with which), tréna (through which)).

Particle[edit]

a (triggers eclipsis, takes the dependent form of an irregular verb; not used in the past tense except with some irregular verbs)

  1. introduces an indirect relative clause
    an bord a raibh leabhar airthe table on which there was a book
    an fear a bhfuil a mhac ag imeachtthe man whose son is going away
Related terms[edit]
  • ar (used with the past tense of regular and some irregular verbs)

Pronoun[edit]

a (triggers eclipsis, takes the dependent form of an irregular verb; not used in the past tense except with some irregular verbs)

  1. all that, whatever
    Sin a bhfuil ann.
    That's all that is there.
    An bhfuair tú a raibh uait?
    Did you get all that you wanted?
    Íocfaidh mé as a gceannóidh tú.
    I will pay for whatever you buy.
Related terms[edit]
  • ar (used with the past tense of regular and some irregular verbs)

References[edit]

  • Nicholas Williams (1994), “Na Canúintí a Theacht chun Solais”, in K. McCone, D. McManus, C. Ó Háinle, N. Williams, L. Breatnach, editors, Stair na Gaeilge: in ómós do P[h]ádraig Ó Fiannachta (in Irish), Maynooth: Roinn na Sean-Ghaeilge, Coláiste Phádraig, →ISBN, page 464: “Tháinig nós chun cinn sa 17ú haois freisin an réamhfhocal a dhúbláil: don té agá mbíonn cloidheamh..aige; daoine agá mbíonn grádh aco do Dhia (Ó Cuív, 1952b, 177), an tí ag a bhfuil a bheag do chuntabhairt aige (Williams, 1986, 155).”
  • Gerald O’Nolan (1934) The New Era Grammar of Modern Irish, The Educational Company of Ireland Ltd., page 56

Etymology 4[edit]

Particle[edit]

a (triggers lenition)

  1. introduces a vocative
    A Dhia!
    O God!
    A dhuine uasail!
    Sir!
    Tar isteach, a Sheáin.
    Come in, Seán.
    A amadáin!
    You fool!

Etymology 5[edit]

Particle[edit]

a (triggers h-prothesis)

  1. introduces a numeral
    a haon, a dó, a trí...one, two, three...
    Séamas aJames the Second
    bus a seachtbus seven

Etymology 6[edit]

Originally a reduced form of do.

Preposition[edit]

a (plus dative, triggers lenition)

  1. to (used with verbal nouns)
    síol a churto sow seed
    uisce a ólto drink water
    an rud atá sé a scríobhwhat he is writing
    D’éirigh sé a chaint.
    He rose to speak.
    Téigh a chodladh.
    Go to sleep.

Mutation[edit]

Irish mutation
Radical Eclipsis with h-prothesis with t-prothesis
a n-a ha not applicable
Note: Some of these forms may be hypothetical. Not every possible mutated form of every word actually occurs.

Further reading[edit]

Istriot[edit]

Etymology[edit]

From Latin ad.

Preposition[edit]

a

  1. at
    • 1877, Antonio Ive, Canti popolari istriani: raccolti a Rovigno, volume 5, Ermanno Loescher, page 99:
      A poûpa, a prùa a xì doûto bandere,
      At the stern, at the bow everything is flags,

Particle[edit]

a

  1. emphasises a verb; mandatory with impersonal verbs
    • 1877, Antonio Ive, Canti popolari istriani: raccolti a Rovigno, volume 5, Ermanno Loescher, page 99:
      A poûpa, a prùa a xì doûto bandere,
      At the stern, at the bow everything is flags,

Italian[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Etymology 1[edit]

From Latin ā (the name of the letter A).

Letter[edit]

a f or m (invariable, lower case, upper case A)

  1. The first letter of the Italian alphabet, called a and written in the Latin script.

Noun[edit]

a f (invariable)

  1. The name of the Latin-script letter A.; a
See also[edit]

Etymology 2[edit]

From Latin ad. In a few phrases, a stems from Latin ā, ab.

Preposition[edit]

a

  1. Indicates the indirect object. to
    Porta questo cesto alla nonna.
    Bring this basket to grandma.
    Ai gatti piacciono i pesci.
    Cats like fish.
    (literally, “Fish are pleasable to cats.”)
    E lo chiedi a me?
    You're asking that to me?
  2. Indicates the place, used in some contexts, in others in is used. in, to
    Andiamo a casa?
    Can we go home?
    (literally, “Can we go to home?”)
    Ora sto a Palermo, a Roma ci torno domani.
    I'm in Palermo now, I'll go back to Rome tomorrow.
  3. Denotes the manner. with
    appena, a nuoto, a piedi, a casoalmost, swimming, by foot, randomly
  4. Forms adverbs meaning in a manner related or resembling ~.
    a cappella, a bestia, a braccio, a pennello, etc.(please add an English translation of this usage example)
  5. Forms goodbye formulas from the time the persons will meet again. see you...
    A domani!See you tomorrow!
    A dopo!See you later!
    Al prossimo Natale!See you next Christmas!
  6. Introduces the ingredients of a dish, perfume, etc. with
    pasta all'uovopasta with eggs
    cornetto al cioccolatochocolate croissant
    shampoo al limonelemon shampoo
    patatine alla pizzapizza-flavoured crisps
  7. (central-southern Italy) Denotes the direct object, but only if it's not preceded by articles
    Chiama a Paolo.
    Call Paolo.
    E non ci avevi visto a noi?
    And you didn't see us?
    the "us" here is repeated twice for emphasis
    Ascolti a me, signó!
    Listen to me, ma'am!
  8. (followed by the definite article) Forms an interjection that gives an instruction or calls attention to something.
    Al ladro!Thief!
    Al fuoco!Fire!
    Al lupo!Wolf!
    All'attacco!Attack!
    All'arrembaggio!Assault! (yelled by pirates)
  9. (regional) Forms continuous tense when preceded by stare and followed by verb infinitives. -ing. The standard language for this scope uses gerunds.
    che stai a di'?what are you saying?
    stavo a dormi'I was sleeping
  10. Repeated indicates the amount by which something grows. by
    a due a duetwo by two; in pairs
    a poco a pocolittle by little
  11. Indicates the agent of a verb in some contexts. by. Sometimes interchangable with da.
    L'ho sentito dire a Livia.
    I heard Livia say it.
    (literally, “I heard it said by Livia.”)
    • c. 1909, Luigi Pirandello, chapter 2.3, in I vecchi e i giovani:
      Mi duole, creda, sinceramente, veder fare a un uomo come lei, per cui ho tanta stima, una figura... non bella, via! non bella.
      (please add an English translation of this quotation)
Usage notes[edit]
  • When followed by a word that begins with a vowel sound, the form ad is used instead.
  • When followed by the definite article, a combines with the article to produce the following combined forms:
a + article Combined form
a + il al
a + lo allo
a + l' all'
a + i ai
a + gli agli
a + la alla
a + le alle
Descendants[edit]
  • Norwegian Bokmål: a (learned)

Etymology 3[edit]

Verb[edit]

a

  1. Misspelling of ha.

References[edit]


Further reading[edit]

Jamaican Creole[edit]

Preposition[edit]

a

  1. Indicates location: at, in, on.
    a mi yaad
    at my home
  2. of
    Yunaitid Stiet a Amoerka
    United States of America
  3. to
    Go a skuul.
    Go to school.

Pronoun[edit]

a

  1. I
    A se it.
    I see it.

Verb[edit]

a

  1. is
    Jumieka a wahn ailan konchri.
    Jamaica is an island country.
  2. are, am
    Wi a api.
    We are happy.
    Mi a di tiicha.
    I am the teacher.

Particle[edit]

a

  1. habitual present tense marker
    wan plies we dem a plie haki mach
    a place where they play hockey matches

Further reading[edit]

Japanese[edit]

Romanization[edit]

a

  1. Rōmaji transcription of
  2. Rōmaji transcription of

Jersey Dutch[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

  • (phoneme): IPA(key): /ʊ/, /ɑ/

Letter[edit]

a

  1. A letter of the Jersey Dutch alphabet, written in the Latin script.

K'iche'[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Adjective[edit]

a

  1. masculine youth indicator

Adverb[edit]

a

  1. (interrogatory) indicator of a question

Pronoun[edit]

a

  1. your

References[edit]

Kabuverdianu[edit]

Letter[edit]

a (uppercase A)

  1. The first letter of the Kabuverdianu alphabet, written in the Latin script.

Kabyle[edit]

Alternative forms[edit]

Determiner[edit]

a

  1. this
    a rgaz a
    this man

Kalasha[edit]

Etymology[edit]

From Sanskrit अहम् (ahám).

Pronoun[edit]

a (Arabic آ)

  1. I (1st-person personal pronoun)

See also[edit]

Kapampangan[edit]

Ligature[edit]

a

  1. Connects adjectives to nouns.
    Romantiku a bengi.
    A romantic night.
    Pinakapalsintan a tau.
    The person I love the most.
    Mayap a abak.
    Good morning.
    Mayap a bengi.
    Good night.
    Dakal a salamat.
    Thank you very much.

See also[edit]

Kari'na[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Interjection[edit]

a

  1. ah, aah

References[edit]

  • Courtz, Hendrik (2008) A Carib grammar and dictionary[9], Toronto: Magoria Books, →ISBN, page 213
  • Yamada, Racquel-María (2010), “a”, in Speech community-based documentation, description, and revitalization: Kari’nja in Konomerume, University of Oregon, page 707

Kashubian[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

  • IPA(key): /ˈa/
  • Syllabification: a

Etymology 1[edit]

The Kashubian orthography is based on the Latin alphabet. No earlier script is known. See the Kashubian alphabet article on Wikipedia for more, and a for development of the glyph itself.

Letter[edit]

a (lowercase, uppercase A)

  1. The first letter of the Kashubian alphabet, called a and written in the Latin script.

See also[edit]

Etymology 2[edit]

Inherited from Proto-Slavic *a.

Conjunction[edit]

a

  1. and (used to continue a previous statement or to add to it)

Noun[edit]

a n (indeclinable)

  1. (music) a (note)

Etymology 3[edit]

Inherited from Proto-Slavic *a.

Interjection[edit]

a

  1. interjection that expresses various emotions; ah!

Further reading[edit]

  • Stefan Ramułt (1893), “a”, in Słownik języka pomorskiego czyli kaszubskiego, page 1
  • Bernard Sychta (1967-1973), “a, a!”, in Słownik gwar kaszubskich, volume 1, page 1
  • Eùgeniusz Gòłąbk (2011), “a”, in Słownik Polsko-Kaszubski / Słowôrz Pòlskò-Kaszëbsczi, volume 1, page 9
  • A, a”, in Internetowi Słowôrz Kaszëbsczégò Jãzëka [Internet Dictionary of the Kashubian Language], Fundacja Kaszuby, 2022
  • a!”, in Internetowi Słowôrz Kaszëbsczégò Jãzëka [Internet Dictionary of the Kashubian Language], Fundacja Kaszuby, 2022

Kayan[edit]

Letter[edit]

a

  1. a the first letter of Kayan alphabet.

Pronoun[edit]

a

  1. used for he, she, third person.

Koitabu[edit]

Pronoun[edit]

a

  1. you (singular)

References[edit]

  • Terry Crowley, Claire Bowern, An Introduction to Historical Linguistics

Krisa[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

IPA(key): /a/

Noun[edit]

a m

  1. pig
    Nana a doma.
    I shot your pig.

References[edit]

  • Donohue, Mark and San Roque, Lila. I'saka: a sketch grammar of a language of north-central New Guinea. (Pacific Linguistics, 554.) (2004).

Ladin[edit]

Etymology[edit]

From Latin a.

Pronunciation[edit]

Preposition[edit]

a

  1. in
  2. at
  3. to

Derived terms[edit]

Lashi[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Adverb[edit]

a

  1. not

References[edit]

  • Hkaw Luk (2017) A grammatical sketch of Lacid[10], Chiang Mai: Payap University (master thesis)

Latgalian[edit]

Etymology[edit]

Ultimately from Proto-Balto-Slavic . The source is not clear:

  • Probably borrowed from a Slavic language (compare Russian а (a) and Belarusian а (a)).
  • Alternatively, irregularly shortened from *ā, inherited from .

Compare Lithuanian o.

Pronunciation[edit]

  • IPA(key): [ˈa]
  • Hyphenation: a

Conjunction[edit]

a f

  1. and, but

References[edit]

  • A. Andronov; L. Leikuma (2008) Latgalīšu-Latvīšu-Krīvu sarunu vuordineica, Lvava, →ISBN

Latin[edit]

Etymology 1[edit]

From Ancient Greek Α (A, alpha), likely through Etruscan.

Pronunciation[edit]

(letter name):

Letter[edit]

a (lower case, upper case A)

  1. (sometimes with littera) the first letter of the Latin alphabet.
    littera athe letter a

Etymology 2[edit]

From Etruscan.

Pronunciation[edit]

Noun[edit]

ā f (indeclinable)

  1. The name of the letter A.
Coordinate terms[edit]

Etymology 3[edit]

Alternative form of ab by apocope (not used before a vowel or h).

Alternative forms[edit]

  • à (earlier in New Latin)
  • ab

Pronunciation[edit]

Preposition[edit]

ā (+ ablative)

  1. (indicating ablation) from, away from, out of
    • c. 52 BCE, Julius Caesar, Commentarii de Bello Gallico 1.1:
      Gallōs ab Aquītānīs Garumna flūmen, ā Belgīs Matrona et Sēquana dīvidit.
      The river Garonne separates the Gauls from the Aquitani; the Marne and the Seine (separate them) from the Belgae.
  2. (indicating ablation) down from
  3. (indicating agency: source of action or event) by, by means of
    • 45 BCE, Cicero, De finibus bonorum et malorum 1.2:
      Quamquam philosophiae quidem vituperātōribus satis respōnsum est eō librō, quō ā nōbīs philosophia dēfēnsa et collaudāta est, cum esset accūsāta et vituperāta ab Hortēnsiō.
      Although indeed to the vituperators of philosophy an adequate response is in that book, in which philosophy has been defended and highly praised by us [me], when it had been accused and vituperated by Hortensius.
  4. (indicating instrumentality: source of action or event) by, by means of, with
  5. (indicating association) to, with
  6. (indicating location) at, on, in
  7. (time) after, since
Usage notes[edit]

Used in conjunction with passive verbs to mark the agent.

  • Liber ā discipulō aperītur.
    The book is opened by the student.
Derived terms[edit]
Descendants[edit]
  • Italian: a
  • Norwegian Bokmål: a (learned)
  • Norwegian Bokmål: a (learned)

Etymology 4[edit]

Expressive.

Pronunciation[edit]

Interjection[edit]

ā

  1. ah

Further reading[edit]

  • a”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  • a”, in Charlton T. Lewis (1891) An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers
  • a in Gaffiot, Félix (1934) Dictionnaire illustré latin-français, Hachette
  • a - ΛΟΓΕΙΟΝ (since 2011) Dictionaries for Ancient Greek and Latin (in English, French, Spanish, German, Dutch) University of Chicago.

Latvian[edit]

Etymology[edit]

Proposed in 1908 as part of the new Latvian spelling by the scientific commission headed by K. Mīlenbahs, which was accepted and began to be taught in schools in 1909. Prior to that, Latvian had been written in German Fraktur, and sporadically in Cyrillic.

Pronunciation[edit]

Letter[edit]

A

a (lower case, upper case A)

  1. The first letter of the Latvian alphabet, written in the Latin script.

See also[edit]

Noun[edit]

a m (invariable)

  1. The name of the Latin script letter A/a.

See also[edit]

Further reading[edit]

Laz[edit]

Determiner[edit]

a

  1. Latin spelling of (a)

Letter[edit]

a

  1. The first letter of the Laz alphabet, written in the Latin script.

See also[edit]

Numeral[edit]

a

  1. Latin spelling of (a)

Ligurian[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Etymology 1[edit]

Ligurian Definite Articles
singular plural
masculine o i
feminine  a e

Article[edit]

a f sg (plural e)

  1. the

Etymology 2[edit]

From Latin ad.

Preposition[edit]

a

  1. in
  2. at
  3. to
    Vàddo a câza.I'm going home. (literally, “I go to home.”)
  4. indicates the direct object, mainly to avoid confusion when it, the subject, or both are displaced, or for emphasis
    A mæ seu ghe fa mâ 'n bràsso.My sister's arm hurts. (literally, “To my sister an arm hurts.”)
a + article Combined form
a + o a-o
a + a a-a
a + i a-i
a + e a-e

Livonian[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Letter[edit]

a (upper case A)

  1. The first letter of the Livonian alphabet, written in the Latin script.


Louisiana Creole[edit]

Etymology[edit]

From French avoir (to have).

Verb[edit]

a

  1. to have

Lower Sorbian[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Letter[edit]

a (upper case A)

  1. The first letter of the Lower Sorbian alphabet, called a and written in the Latin script.
  2. The name of the Latin-script letter a.

Conjunction[edit]

a

  1. and

See also[edit]

Further reading[edit]

  • Muka, Arnošt (1921, 1928), “a”, in Słownik dolnoserbskeje rěcy a jeje narěcow (in German), St. Petersburg, Prague: ОРЯС РАН, ČAVU; Reprinted Bautzen: Domowina-Verlag, 2008
  • Starosta, Manfred (1999), “a”, in Dolnoserbsko-nimski słownik / Niedersorbisch-deutsches Wörterbuch (in German), Bautzen: Domowina-Verlag

Lushootseed[edit]

Letter[edit]

a

  1. The second letter of the Lushootseed alphabet, pronounced as an open back unrounded vowel.

Malay[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Letter[edit]

a (lower case, upper case A)

  1. The first letter of the Malay alphabet, written in the Latin script.

See also[edit]

Interjection[edit]

a (Jawi spelling ا)

  1. Used to show excitement or to show agreement.
    A, macam itulah sepatutnya kaujawab!
    Yes, that's how you should answer!
  2. Used to show that you have forgotten or are attempting to remember something.
    Dia ni, a, salah seorang Perdana Menteri Britain dulu.
    This guy is, uh, one of Britain's Prime Ministers in the past.

Further reading[edit]

Maltese[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

  • IPA(key): /a/ (short phoneme)
  • IPA(key): /aː/ (long phoneme)

Letter[edit]

a (lower case, upper case A)

  1. The first letter of the Maltese alphabet, written in the Latin script.

See also[edit]

Mandarin[edit]

Romanization[edit]

a (a5a0, Zhuyin ˙ㄚ)

  1. Hanyu Pinyin reading of
  2. Hanyu Pinyin reading of
  3. Hanyu Pinyin reading of

a

  1. Nonstandard spelling of ā.
  2. Nonstandard spelling of á.
  3. Nonstandard spelling of ǎ.
  4. Nonstandard spelling of à.

Usage notes[edit]

  • Transcriptions of Mandarin into the Latin script often do not distinguish between the critical tonal differences employed in the Mandarin language, using words such as this one without indication of tone.

Mandinka[edit]

Pronoun[edit]

a

  1. he, him (personal pronoun)
    A m busaHe/she struck me.
    Y a busaThey struck him/her.
  2. she, her (personal pronoun)
  3. it (personal pronoun)

See also[edit]

Maori[edit]

Particle[edit]

a

  1. of
  2. (determinative particle for names)
  3. (particle for pronouns when succeeding ki, i, kei, and hei)

Usage notes[edit]

  • When used in the sense of of, suggests that the possessor has control of the relationship (alienable possession).

Masurian[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

  • IPA(key): [ˈa]
  • Syllabification: a

Etymology 1[edit]

Inherited from Old Polish a.

Conjunction[edit]

a

  1. (contrastive) and, but, whereas
  2. (coordinating) and; at that

Particle[edit]

a

  1. sometimes neutral or emphatic, used to start a sentence or question

Etymology 2[edit]

Inherited from Old Polish a, from Proto-Slavic *a.

Interjection[edit]

a

  1. ah! used when the speaker has remembered or noticed something

Further reading[edit]

  • Zofia Stamirowska (1987-2021), “a”, in Anna Basara, editor, Słownik gwar Ostródzkiego, Warmii i Mazur, volume 1, Zakład Narodowy im. Ossolińskich Wydawnictwo Polskiej Akademii Nauk, →ISBN, page 107-109

Mezquital Otomi[edit]

Etymology 1[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Interjection[edit]

a

  1. expresses satisfaction, pity, fright, or admiration

Etymology 2[edit]

Alternative forms[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Verb[edit]

a

  1. (transitive) wake, awaken

Etymology 3[edit]

From Proto-Otomi *ʔɔ, from Proto-Otomian *ʔɔ.

Alternative forms[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Noun[edit]

a

  1. flea
Derived terms[edit]

References[edit]

  • Andrews, Enriqueta (1950) Vocabulario otomí de Tasquillo, Hidalgo[11] (in Spanish), México, D.F.: Instituto Lingüístico de Verano, page 1
  • Hernández Cruz, Luis; Victoria Torquemada, Moisés (2010) Diccionario del hñähñu (otomí) del Valle del Mezquital, estado de Hidalgo (Serie de vocabularios y diccionarios indígenas “Mariano Silva y Aceves”; 45)‎[12] (in Spanish), second edition, Instituto Lingüístico de Verano, A.C., page 3

Middle Dutch[edit]

Etymology[edit]

From Old Dutch ā, from Proto-Germanic *ahwō.

Noun[edit]

â f

  1. (rare) river, stream, water

Inflection[edit]

This noun needs an inflection-table template.

Descendants[edit]

Further reading[edit]

  • a (II)”, in Vroegmiddelnederlands Woordenboek, 2000

Middle English[edit]

Etymology 1[edit]

Pronoun[edit]

a

  1. Alternative form of an (mainly preconsonantal)

Etymology 2[edit]

Pronoun[edit]

a

  1. (Late Middle English) Alternative form of I (I)

Etymology 3[edit]

Pronoun[edit]

a

  1. Alternative form of heo (she)

Etymology 4[edit]

Pronoun[edit]

a

  1. Alternative form of he (he)

Etymology 5[edit]

Pronoun[edit]

a

  1. Alternative form of he (they)

Etymology 6[edit]

Numeral[edit]

a

  1. (Northern, Early Middle English) Alternative form of oo (one)

Middle French[edit]

Etymology 1[edit]

From Old French a, from Latin ad.

Alternative forms[edit]

  • à (after 1550)

Preposition[edit]

a

  1. to; towards

Etymology 2[edit]

From Old French, from Latin habet.

Verb[edit]

a

  1. third-person singular present indicative of avoir

Middle Welsh[edit]

Etymology 1[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Particle[edit]

a (triggers lenition)

  1. O (vocative particle)

Etymology 2[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Pronoun[edit]

a (triggers lenition)

  1. who, which, that

Particle[edit]

a (triggers lenition)

  1. inserted before the verb when the subject of direct object precedes it

Etymology 3[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Particle[edit]

a (triggers lenition)

  1. used to introduce a direct question
  2. whether, used to introduce an indirect question

Etymology 4[edit]

Reduction of o (from).

Pronunciation[edit]

Preposition[edit]

a

  1. used between a focused adjective and the noun it modifies

Etymology 5[edit]

From Old Welsh ha.

Alternative forms[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Conjunction[edit]

a (triggers aspiration)

  1. and

Etymology 6[edit]

Alternative forms[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Preposition[edit]

a (triggers aspiration)

  1. with

Etymology 7[edit]

From Proto-Celtic *ageti, from Proto-Indo-European *h₂eǵ-.

Alternative forms[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Verb[edit]

a

  1. third-person singular present indicative of mynet

Mutation[edit]

Middle Welsh mutation
Radical Soft Nasal H-prothesis
a unchanged unchanged ha
Note: Some of these forms may be hypothetical. Not every
possible mutated form of every word actually occurs.

Mòcheno[edit]

Etymology[edit]

From Middle High German ein, from Old High German ein, from Proto-West Germanic *ain, from Proto-Germanic *ainaz (one, a).

Article[edit]

a (oblique masculine an)

  1. a, an

References[edit]

Mopan Maya[edit]

Article[edit]

a

  1. the

References[edit]

  • Hofling, Charles Andrew (2011). Mopan Maya–Spanish–English Dictionary, University of Utah Press.

Mountain Koiari[edit]

Pronoun[edit]

a

  1. you (singular)

References[edit]

  • Terry Crowley, Claire Bowern, An Introduction to Historical Linguistics

Murui Huitoto[edit]

Adverb[edit]

a

  1. Superseded spelling of aa.

References[edit]

  • Shirley Burtch (1983) Diccionario Huitoto Murui (Tomo I) (Linguistica Peruana No. 20)‎[13] (in Spanish), Yarinacocha, Peru: Instituto Lingüístico de Verano, page 19

Nauruan[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Pronoun[edit]

a

  1. I (first person singular pronoun)
    • 2000, Lisa M Johnson, Firstness of Secondness in Nauruan Morphology (overall work in English):
      a pudun
      1sing fall+Vn
      I fell
      []
      a nuwawen
      1pers.sing. go+Vn
      I did go. (I left.)
      []
      a kaiotien aem
      [1pers.sing.] [hear+Vn] [your words]
      I hear what you said.
      []
      a nan imoren
      1pers.sing. FUT health+Vn
      I shall be cured (get better).

Navajo[edit]

Letter[edit]

a (lower case, upper case A)

  1. The first letter of the Navajo alphabet, written in the Latin script.
    a = /a˨/
    ą = /ã˨/
    á = /a˥/
    ą́ = /ã˥/
    aa = /aː˨˨/
    ąą = /ãː˨˨/
    áa = /aː˥˨/
    ą́ą = /ãː˥˨/
    aá = /aː˨˥/
    ąą́ = /ãː˨˥/
    áá = /aː˥˥/
    ą́ą́ = /ãː˥˥/

See also[edit]

Neapolitan[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Etymology 1[edit]

From Latin de ab.

Preposition[edit]

a

  1. from (referring to a place)
  2. by (introducing the actor in the passive voice)
  3. to (implying necessity)

Etymology 2[edit]

From Latin ad.

Preposition[edit]

a

  1. in (locative: staying in a place of relative width)
  2. to (locative: moving towards a place of relative width)
  3. to (dative)

Nias[edit]

Etymology[edit]

From Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *kaən, from Proto-Austronesian *kaən.

Verb[edit]

a (imperfective manga)

  1. (transitive) to eat

References[edit]

  • Sundermann, Heinrich. 1905. Niassisch-deutsches Wörterbuch. Moers: Bataviaasch Genootschap van Kunsten en Wetenschappen, p. 15.

Norman[edit]

Verb[edit]

a

  1. (Guernsey) third-person singular present indicative of aver

Norwegian Bokmål[edit]

The letter a from the Norwegian alphabet.

Etymology 1[edit]

From Latin a, from Ancient Greek Α (A, alpha), likely through the Etruscan language, from Phoenician 𐤀 (ʾ), from Proto-Canaanite , from Proto-Sinaitic , from Egyptian 𓃾, representing the head of an ox.

Pronunciation[edit]

Letter[edit]

a (uppercase A)

  1. The first letter of the Norwegian Bokmål alphabet, written in the Latin script.
See also[edit]

Noun[edit]

a m (definite singular a-en, indefinite plural a-er, definite plural a-ene)

  1. the letter a, the first letter of the Norwegian alphabet
    fra A til Bfrom A to B
    fra A til Åfrom A to Z
    har man sagt a, må man si bif you have said A, you should say B
    • 1999, Lars Roar Langslet, I kamp for norsk kultur, page 234:
      bruken av a i bestemt form i hunkjønnsord
      the use of a in the definite form of feminine words
  2. indicates the first or best entry of a list, order or rank
    Synonyms: A-, a-
    oppgang Aapartment entrance A
    blodgruppe Ablood group A
    førerkort i klasse A(motorcycle) driver's license in class A
    øl i klasse Abeer in class A (with 0,0-0,7 volume percent alcohol)
    A postA post / priority mail
    A-aksjeclass A-share
    hepatitt Ahepatitis A
    • 1919, Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson, Samlede digter-verker I [Collected poetic works 1], page 454:
      [bokstavene begynte] at gaa sammen, to og to: a stod og hvilte under et træ, som hedte b
      [the letters began] to go together, two by two: a stood and rested under a tree called b
    • 1920, Jonas Lie, Samlede Digterverker V, page 389:
      begynde paa Ø istedet for A
      start with Ø instead of A
    • 1886, Arne Garborg, Mogning og manndom I, page 172:
      jeg traf sammen med et par generalbanditter, gamle gutter, storartede ranglefanter, 1ste klasse 1 A med stjerne, deilige herremænd
      I met a couple of general bandits, old boys, great revelers, 1st class 1 A with a star, lovely gentlemen
    • 1939, Knut Hamsun, Artikler, page 99:
      historie er hvad A mener til forskel fra B, og hvad C igen mener til forskel baade fra A og B om den samme sag
      story is what A thinks differently from B and what C again thinks differently from both A and B about the same case
  3. the highest grade in a school or university using the A-F scale
    få A til eksamen
    receive an A on an exam
    • 2019, Helene Uri, Stillheten etterpå, page 14:
      jeg har gode karakterer. Bare A-er og B-er
      I have good grades. Only A's and B's
  4. (music) designation of the sixth note from C and the corresponding tone
    A-dur
    A major
    A-moll
    A minor
    • 1944, Børre Qvamme, Musikk, page 10:
      synge en riktig A uten hjelp av et instrument eller stemmegaffel
      sing a correct A without the aid of an instrument or tuning fork
    • 1973, Finn Havrevold, Avreisen, page 127:
      han slår énstrøken a på klaveret
      he strikes one stroke A on the piano
    • 1997, Tove Nilsen, G for Georg, page 42:
      så gal at man virkelig tror at svaler er g-nøkler og bass-nøkler og a’er og c’er som svever rundt hverandre og lager konsert i himmelen
      so crazy that you really think swallows are g-keys and bass-keys and a's and c's floating around each other and making a concert in the sky
  5. (physics) symbol for ampere
  6. (physics) symbol for nucleon number
  7. (horology) symbol for avance
  8. symbol for anno
  9. short form of atom-
    Synonym: a-
    a-bombe
    atom bomb (a-bomb)

Derived terms[edit]

Etymology 2[edit]

Abbreviation of atto- (atto-).

Symbol[edit]

a

  1. atto-, prefix for 10-18 in the International System of Units.

Etymology 3[edit]

Abbreviation of ar (are).

Symbol[edit]

a

  1. an are, a unit of area one hundredth of a hectare; ares
    Synonym: ar

Etymology 4[edit]

From French à (to, on, in).

Preposition[edit]

a

  1. Alternative spelling of à
Alternative forms[edit]

Etymology 5[edit]

From Latin ā (from, away from, out of), alternative form of ab (from, away from, out of, down from).

Preposition[edit]

a

  1. (used in Latin expressions, before a consonant) from, of
    a posteriori, a prima vista, a priori, a tempo, a verbo, a viso, a vista
Alternative forms[edit]

Etymology 6[edit]

From Italian a (in, at, to).

Preposition[edit]

a

  1. (used in Italian expressions, before a consonant) from, of, with
    a battuta, a cappella, a due, a dato, a konto
  2. weak form of av (of)

Etymology 7[edit]

From Old Norse hana (her), accusative form of hón (she), from Proto-Norse [script needed] (*hān-), from a prefixed form of Proto-Germanic *ainaz (one; some), from Proto-Indo-European *óynos (one; single).

Pronoun[edit]

a

  1. (dialectal, used enclitically after a conjunction or subjunction) she
    • 1948, Helge Krog, Skuespill I, page 43:
      jagu slår a ja. Og det så det kjens. Forleden dag ga hun meg en knallende ørefik
      she can certainly punch. And so you feel it. The other day she gave me a popping slap to the ear
    • 1989, Bergljot Hobæk Haff, Den guddommelige tragedie:
      hu kunne ikke henge på seg så mye som et enrada perlebånd, uten at a måtte skotte opp i skyene for å høre hva den aller høyeste mente
      she could not put on as much as a single string of pearls, without having to shoot up into the clouds to hear what the very highest one meant
  2. (dialectal, about grammatically feminine animals or objects) it, she
    • 1899, Sfinx, Vi og Voreses, page 45:
      hos Hansens laa dem te klokka var ni, og 10 var a mange ganger ogsaa
      at Hansen's they laid until nine o'clock, and 10 she was many times too
    • 1954, Agnar Mykle, Lasso rundt fru Luna, page 476:
      hvor ligger a [duskeluen] henne?
      where is the hat?
    hvor er a katta di?
    where is your cat?
    Synonym: hun
  3. (dialectal, used enclitically) her; object form of hun (=she)
    hva gjorde du med a?
    what did you do to her?
    • 1847–1868, Halfdan Kjerulf, Av hans efterladte papirer, page 245:
      jeg [skrev] klaverstykker … en lille scherzo med nordisk motiv … «gjenta» og «Jørgen Matros», som gjør kur til ’a og «Ola Spelman» som hun foretrækker
      I [wrote] piano pieces… a small scherzo with a Nordic motif… «gjenta» and «Jørgen Matros», which makes cure for her and «Ola Spelman» which she prefers
    • 1875, Alexander Erbe, Fra skjærgaarden, page 23:
      [klokkeren] skulle da koste paa a amen
      [the clockmaker] would then cost her amen
    • 1921, Sigrid Undset, Samlede romaner og fortællinger fra nutiden I, page 6:
      jeg kan da gjerne skjære litt mat til a
      I could happily cut some food for her
    • 1931, Aksel Sandemose, En sjømann går i land, page 19:
      han stakk henne med kniven, riktig kylt’n midt i magan på a
      he stabbed her with the knife, really threw in the middle of her stomach
    • 2010, Helene Guåker, Kjør!:
      flere enn deg i hvert fall, di lørje, svarte jeg og så a midt i aua
      more than you at least, you skank, I answered and looked her in the eye
  4. (dialectal, about grammatically feminine animals or objects) it, her
    hvis katta stikker av, må du fange a!
    if the cat runs away, you need to catch her!
    • 1895, Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson, Over Ævne II, page 136:
      naar kjærka ikke kan holde arbejderne i ave [age], aa faen skal vi saa me’a
      when the church can not keep the workers in duty, what the hell do we do with her then
    Synonym: henne
  5. (dialectal, used proclitically with a woman's name or female relation) she, her
    • 1921, Sigrid Undset, Samlede romaner og fortællinger fra nutiden V, page 96:
      ta a Guldborg
      consider Guldborg
    • 1921, Sigrid Undset, Samlede romaner og fortællinger fra nutiden V, page 64:
      har du glemt a mamma
      did you forget about mom
    • 2015, Rudolf Nilsen, Samlede dikt, page 88:
      a Paula kom plystrende hjem
      Paula came home whistling
    • 2015 March 12, Gerd Nyland, “Fire år uten radio”, in Oppland Arbeiderblad[14], archived from the original on 2023-01-28:
      a tante Karen, mor hennes Reidun, hadde ordne med sengeplasser i stua, Booken på en divan og a Rita på flatseng på golvet
      aunt Karen, her mother Reidun, had arranged beds in the living room, Booken on a daybed and Rita on a flat bed on the floor

Etymology 8[edit]

From Danish ah (oh), likely from German ach (oh), from Middle High German ach, from Old High German ah. Also see ah and akk.

Interjection[edit]

a

  1. expression of surprise or horror
    a, for noe tøv!
    oh, such nonsense!
    • 1888, Herman Colditz, Kjærka, et Atélierinteriør:
      a, det er bare noe drit til han terracottaen
      oh, that is just some crap for that terracotta guy
  2. expression of admiration or happiness
    a, det gjorde godt!
    oh, that felt good!
    • 1897, Fridtjof Nansen, Fram over Polhavet I, page 345:
      a, kunde vi bare gi «Fram» slige vinger
      oh, if only we could give "Fram" wings like that
  3. used with the words yes and no to give a sense of impatience or rejection
    a jo, men hold nå fred!
    oh yes, but keep quiet now
    • 1874, Henrik Ibsen, Fru Inger til Østråt, page 99:
      a nej, det kan være det samme
      oh no, it does not matter
    • 1874-1878, Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson, Brytnings-år I, page 25:
      a ja, lad Schirmer tegne staburet
      oh yes, let Schirmer draw the storehouse
    • 1988, Arild Nyquist, Giacomettis forunderlige reise:
      verden er vakker, bestemor. Selv når det regner og blåser. A ja da.
      the world is beautiful, grandma. Even when it's raining and windy. Oh yes.

Etymology 9[edit]

Mostly likely from Norwegian ad (against, on), from Danish ad (by, at), from Old Danish at, from Old Norse at (at, to), from Proto-Germanic *at (at, toward, to), from Proto-Indo-European *h₂éd (to, at).

Interjection[edit]

a

  1. expression of anger or sorrow, especially with a personal pronoun
    uff a meg!
    oh, my!
    huff a meg!
    oh, no!
Alternative forms[edit]

References[edit]

  • “a” in The Bokmål Dictionary.
  • “a” in Det Norske Akademis ordbok (NAOB).
  • a” in Store norske leksikon
  • a on the Norwegian Bokmål Wikipedia.Wikipedia nb

Anagrams[edit]

Norwegian Nynorsk[edit]

Etymology 1[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Letter[edit]

a (lowercase, uppercase A)

  1. The first letter of the Norwegian Nynorsk alphabet, written in the Latin script.
See also[edit]

Noun[edit]

a m (definite singular a-en, indefinite plural a-ar, definite plural a-ane)

  1. the letter a

Etymology 2[edit]

Interjection[edit]

a

  1. ah!
    Synonyms: ah, å

Etymology 3[edit]

From Old Norse af, from Proto-Germanic *ab, from Proto-Indo-European *h₂epó.

Preposition[edit]

a

  1. (dialect) alternative form of av
    • c. 1700, Sigurd Kolsrud, quoting Jacob Rasch, “Eldste nynorske bibeltekst: Jacob Rasch c. 1700”, in Syn og Segn, volume 56, published 1950, page 110:
      fre a Gud okka far aa Jesu Christo den herræ.
      peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

References[edit]

Nupe[edit]

Etymology 1[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

  • (phoneme): IPA(key): /a/, (after /n/ or /m/) /ã/

Letter[edit]

a (lower case, upper case A)

  1. The first letter of the Nupe alphabet, written in the Latin script.
See also[edit]

Etymology 2[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Particle[edit]

à

  1. not (placed at the end of a clause to negate it)
    Mi de eshìgi à, mi ma de dàǹgi à.I don't have a dog, and I don't have a cat.

Etymology 3[edit]

Clipping of

Pronunciation[edit]

Particle[edit]

á

  1. Marks the perfective aspect, for actions that are completed
Usage notes[edit]

á, which is derived from the verb (to take), functions like a verb so that the word order in the present perfect tense is that of a serial verb construction.

  • Musa shi dùkùnMusa bought a pot
  • Musa á dùkùn shi.Musa has bought a pot. (literally, “Musa took a pot to buy”)

Etymology 4[edit]

Clipping of

Pronunciation[edit]

Particle[edit]

à

  1. Used to express the future tense (placed before verbs)
    A à lá èbi be nakànThey will use a knife to cut the meat

Occitan[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Etymology 1[edit]

From Latin ad.

Preposition[edit]

a

  1. to
  2. at
Derived terms[edit]

Etymology 2[edit]

Noun[edit]

a f (plural as)

  1. a (the letter a)

Etymology 3[edit]

Verb[edit]

a

  1. third-person singular present indicative of aver

Old Czech[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Etymology 1[edit]

Inherited from Proto-Slavic *a, from Proto-Balto-Slavic .

Interjection[edit]

a

  1. ah!
Descendants[edit]
  • Czech: a

Etymology 2[edit]

Inherited from Proto-Slavic *a, from Proto-Balto-Slavic .

Particle[edit]

a

  1. Connective, contrasitve particle; and
  2. then, as, if
  3. yes, of course

Conjunction[edit]

a

  1. and (used to continue a previous statement or to add to it)
  2. and, but, whereas (used contrastively)
Descendants[edit]
  • Czech: a

References[edit]

Old Danish[edit]

Alternative forms[edit]

  • aa (Jutlandic)

Pronunciation[edit]

Etymology 1[edit]

From Old Norse á, from Proto-Germanic *ahwō.

Noun[edit]

ā (genitive ār, plural ār)

  1. (Scania) stream, river
Descendants[edit]
  • Danish: å

Etymology 2[edit]

From Old Norse á, from Proto-Germanic *ana.

Preposition[edit]

ā

  1. (Scania) on, in, at
Descendants[edit]

Etymology 3[edit]

Verb[edit]

ā

  1. first/third-person singular present indicative of ēgha

Old Dutch[edit]

Etymology[edit]

From Proto-West Germanic *ahu.

Noun[edit]

ā f

  1. river, stream, water

Inflection[edit]

This noun needs an inflection-table template.

Alternative forms[edit]

Descendants[edit]

  • Middle Dutch: â

Further reading[edit]

  • ā, ē”, in Oudnederlands Woordenboek, 2012

Old English[edit]

Alternative forms[edit]

Etymology[edit]

From Proto-West Germanic *aiw, from Proto-Germanic *aiwaz (eternity, age).

Pronunciation[edit]

Adverb[edit]

ā

  1. ever, always

Old French[edit]

Etymology 1[edit]

Letter[edit]

a (lower case, upper case A)

  1. The first letter of the Old French alphabet, written in the Latin script.

Etymology 2[edit]

From Latin ad.

Alternative forms[edit]

  • ad
  • à (not in manuscripts; occasionally used by scholars to differentiate between the preposition and the verb form)

Preposition[edit]

a

  1. to
  2. towards
  3. belonging to
    fil a putainson of a whore
Derived terms[edit]
Descendants[edit]
  • French: à
    • Danish: à
    • Dutch: à
    • German: à
    • Hungarian: à
    • Norwegian Bokmål: à, a
    • Swedish: à

Etymology 3[edit]

Alternative forms[edit]

Verb[edit]

a

  1. third-person singular present indicative of avoir

Etymology 4[edit]

From Latin ab.

Adverb[edit]

a

  1. by, by means of

Old Galician-Portuguese[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Etymology 1[edit]

Inherited from Latin ad (toward, to).

Preposition[edit]

a

  1. to; towards

Descendants[edit]

  • Fala: a
  • Galician: a
  • Portuguese: a
    • Indo-Portuguese: a

Etymology 2[edit]

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

Article[edit]

a f

  1. Alternative spelling of á

Old Irish[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Etymology 1[edit]

From Proto-Celtic *sosim (this).

Alternative forms[edit]

  • (relative pronoun): an

Article[edit]

a

  1. nominative/accusative singular neuter of in

For quotations using this term, see Citations:a.

Pronoun[edit]

a (triggers eclipsis, takes a leniting relative clause using a deuterotonic or absolute verb form)

  1. that which, what

For quotations using this term, see Citations:a.

Descendants[edit]
  • Irish: a
  • Scottish Gaelic: a

Further reading[edit]

Etymology 2[edit]

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Conjunction[edit]

a (triggers eclipsis, takes a nasalizing relative clause)

  1. when

For quotations using this term, see Citations:a.

Etymology 3[edit]

From Proto-Celtic *esyo (m and n), *esyās (f), and *ēsom (pl), from Proto-Indo-European *ésyo, genitive singular of *ís and *íd; compare Welsh ei (his, her, its), eu (their); Old High German iro (their); and Sanskrit अस्य (asyá, his, its), अस्यास् (asyā́s, her), and एषाम् (eṣā́m, their).

Alternative forms[edit]

Determiner[edit]

a (predicative or áe) (triggers lenition in the masculine and neuter singular, an unwritten prothetic /h/ before a vowel in the feminine singular, and eclipsis in the plural)

  1. his, its
  2. her, its
  3. their

For quotations using this term, see Citations:a.

Descendants[edit]
  • Irish: a (his, her, its, their)
  • Scottish Gaelic: a (his, her, its); an (their)

Further reading[edit]

Etymology 4[edit]

From Proto-Celtic (compare Welsh a), from Proto-Indo-European (compare Ancient Greek (ô), Latin ō).

Alternative forms[edit]

Particle[edit]

a (triggers lenition)

  1. O (vocative particle)

For quotations using this term, see Citations:a.

Descendants[edit]
  • Irish: a
  • Scottish Gaelic: a

Further reading[edit]

Etymology 5[edit]

Particle[edit]

a (triggers an unwritten prothetic /h/ before a vowel)

  1. introduces a numeral
    a deichten
Descendants[edit]
  • Irish: a
  • Scottish Gaelic: a

Further reading[edit]

Etymology 6[edit]

From Proto-Celtic *exs, from Proto-Indo-European *h₁eǵʰs.

Preposition[edit]

a (combined with plural article asnaib, combined with 1st singular possessive determiner asmo, combined with 3rd person possessive determiner assa)

  1. out of

For quotations using this term, see Citations:a.

Inflection[edit]
Related terms[edit]
Descendants[edit]
  • Irish: as
  • Manx: ass
  • Scottish Gaelic: à

Further reading[edit]

Old Polish[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Etymology 1[edit]

Inherited from Proto-Slavic *a. First attested in the first half of 14th century.

Interjection[edit]

a

  1. ah! (used when the speaker has remembered or noticed something)
Descendants[edit]
  • Masurian: a
  • Polish: a
  • Silesian: a

Etymology 2[edit]

Inherited from Proto-Slavic *a, from Proto-Balto-Slavic . First attested in the first half of 14th century.

Conjunction[edit]

a

  1. and (used to continue a previous statement or to add to it)
  2. and, but, whereas (used contrastively)
  3. and then (used to say an event will occur if some requirement is fulfilled)
  4. emphasizes a question
  5. introduces a new sentences
Related terms[edit]
Descendants[edit]
  • Masurian: a
  • Polish: a
  • Silesian: a

References[edit]

Old Swedish[edit]

Alternative forms[edit]

Etymology[edit]

From Old Norse á, from Proto-Germanic *ahwō.

Pronunciation[edit]

Noun[edit]

ā f

  1. creek, river

Declension[edit]

Descendants[edit]

  • Swedish: å

References[edit]

Omaha-Ponca[edit]

Noun[edit]

a

  1. arm

References[edit]

Ometepec Nahuatl[edit]

Noun[edit]

a

  1. water

Oromo[edit]

Noun[edit]

a (plural aa)

  1. The first letter of the Oromo alphabet, written in the Latin script.

Palauan[edit]

Etymology 1[edit]

From Pre-Palauan *a, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *a.

Article[edit]

a

  1. a, the

Etymology 2[edit]

From Pre-Palauan *a, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *a, from Proto-Austronesian *a.

Conjunction[edit]

a

  1. linking particle

Papiamentu[edit]

Etymology 1[edit]

Letter[edit]

a (lower case upper case, A)

  1. The first letter of the Papiamentu alphabet, written in the Latin script.

Etymology 2[edit]

Particle[edit]

a

  1. Indicates the past tense.
    Mi a papia kuné.I talked to him.

Etymology 3[edit]

From Portuguese a.

Preposition[edit]

a

  1. to
  2. by
  3. at
Usage notes[edit]
  • Only used in set expressions from Spanish.

Polish[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Etymology 1[edit]

The Polish orthography is based on the Latin alphabet. No earlier script is known. See the history of Polish orthography article on Wikipedia for more, and a for development of the glyph itself.

Letter[edit]

a (lowercase, uppercase A)

  1. The first letter of the Polish alphabet, written in the Latin script.
    małe aa minuscule/small/little a
    duże aa capital/big/large a
See also[edit]

Etymology 2[edit]

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.) First attested in the the year 1551.[1]

Noun[edit]

a n (indeclinable)

  1. a, near-open central vowel
    samogłoska athe vowel a
    powiedzieć ato say a
  2. (music) a (note)
    zagrać ato play an a
    zaśpiewać ato sing an a

Related terms[edit]

Etymology 3[edit]

Abbreviation of ar.

Noun[edit]

a m inan

  1. (metrology) Abbreviation of ar.

Etymology 4[edit]

Inherited from Old Polish a.

Conjunction[edit]

a

  1. and, but, whereas (used contrastively)
    A ty?And you?
    Wolisz tabletki, a ja wolę zastrzyki.You prefer pills whereas I prefer injections.
  2. and (used to continue a previous statement or to add to it)
    walka między dobrem a złembattle between good and evil
  3. and then (used to say an event will occur if some requirement is fulfilled)
    Poszukasz, a znajdziesz.If you seek it, then you shall find it.
  4. and (used after a verb to indicate it will last a long time)
    pracować a pracowaćto work and work (for a long time)
  5. such and such (used when the speaker does not want to be more specific, when repeating an element)
  6. is (used to show some connection between two objects which are very different from each other)
  7. what about
    Ja jestem gotowy, a ty?I'm ready, what about you?
Derived terms[edit]
Related terms[edit]

Etymology 5[edit]

Inherited from Old Polish a.

Interjection[edit]

a

  1. ah! (used when the speaker has remembered or noticed something)

Trivia[edit]

According to Słownik frekwencyjny polszczyzny współczesnej (1990), a is one of the most used words in Polish, appearing 555 times in scientific texts, 307 times in news, 507 times in essays, 703 times in fiction, and 1175 times in plays, each out of a corpus of 100,000 words, totaling 3226 times, making it the 13th most common word in a corpus of 500,000 words.[2]

References[edit]

  1. ^ Maria Renata Mayenowa; Stanisław Rospond; Witold Taszycki; Stefan Hrabec; Władysław Kuraszkiewicz (2010-2023), “a”, in Słownik Polszczyzny XVI Wieku [A Dictionary of 16th Century Polish]
  2. ^ Ida Kurcz (1990), “a”, in Słownik frekwencyjny polszczyzny współczesnej [Frequency dictionary of the Polish language] (in Polish), volume 1, Kraków; Warszawa: Polska Akademia Nauk. Instytut Języka Polskiego, page 1

Further reading[edit]

  • a in Wielki słownik języka polskiego, Instytut Języka Polskiego PAN
  • a in Polish dictionaries at PWN
  • Maria Renata Mayenowa; Stanisław Rospond; Witold Taszycki; Stefan Hrabec; Władysław Kuraszkiewicz (2010-2023), “a”, in Słownik Polszczyzny XVI Wieku [A Dictionary of 16th Century Polish]
  • Maria Renata Mayenowa; Stanisław Rospond; Witold Taszycki; Stefan Hrabec; Władysław Kuraszkiewicz (2010-2023), “a”, in Słownik Polszczyzny XVI Wieku [A Dictionary of 16th Century Polish]
  • A”, in Elektroniczny Słownik Języka Polskiego XVII i XVIII Wieku [Electronic Dictionary of the Polish Language of the XVII and XVIII Century], 31.05.2022
  • Samuel Bogumił Linde (1807–1814), “a”, in Słownik języka polskiego
  • Aleksander Zdanowicz (1861), “a”, in Słownik języka polskiego, Wilno 1861
  • J. Karłowicz, A. Kryński, W. Niedźwiedzki, editors (1900), “a”, in Słownik języka polskiego (in Polish), volume 1, Warsaw, page 1

Portuguese[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

letter
article, pronoun

Etymology 1[edit]

From Latin a, form of A, from Etruscan 𐌀 (a), from Ancient Greek Α (A, alpha), from Phoenician 𐤀 (ʾ, aleph), from Egyptian 𓃾.

Letter[edit]

a (lower case, upper case A)

  1. The first letter of the Portuguese alphabet, written in the Latin script.
See also[edit]

Noun[edit]

a m (plural as)

  1. Alternative spelling of á
Related terms[edit]

Etymology 2[edit]

From Old Galician-Portuguese a, from Latin illa (with the disappearance of an initial l; compare Spanish la).

Article[edit]

a

  1. feminine singular of o
Quotations[edit]

For quotations using this term, see Citations:o.

See also[edit]
Portuguese articles (edit)
Singular Plural
Masculine Feminine Masculine Feminine
Definite articles
(the)
o a os as
Indefinite articles
(a, an; some)
um uma uns umas

Pronoun[edit]

a f (third-person singular)

  1. her, it (as a direct object; as an indirect object, see lhe; after prepositions, see ela)
    Encontrei-a na rua.I met her/it on the street.
Usage notes[edit]
  • Becomes -la after verb forms ending in -r, -s, or -z, the pronouns nos (us) and vos (plural you), and the adverb eis (here is; behold); the final letter causing the change disappears.
    After ver (to see): Posso vê-la? — “May I see her/it?”
    After pôs (he/she/it put): Ele pô-la ali. — “He put her/it there.”
    After fiz (I made; I did): Fi-la ficar contente. — “I made her/it become happy.”
    After nos (us): Ela deu-no-la relutantemente. — “She gave her/it to us reluctantly.”
    After eis (here is; behold): Ei-la! — “Behold her/it!”
  • Becomes -na after a nasal vowel or diphthong: -ão, -am [ɐ̃w̃], -õe [õj̃], -em, -êm [ẽj̃].
    Detêm-na como prisioneira. — “They detain her/it as a prisoner.”
  • In informal Brazilian Portuguese, the nominative form ela (she) is more commonly used.
    Eu a vi.Eu vi ela.: “I saw her/it.”
Quotations[edit]

For quotations using this term, see Citations:a.

See also[edit]

See Template:Portuguese personal pronouns for more.

Etymology 3[edit]

From Old Galician-Portuguese a, from Latin ad (to) and ab (from, away, by).

Preposition[edit]

a

  1. to, introduces the indirect object
    Synonym: para
    Dê-o a mim.Give it to me.
    Meu coração pertence a você.My heart belongs to you.
  2. to; towards, indicates destination
    Synonyms: para, até
    Vamos a Paris!Let’s go to Paris!
  3. away, indicates a physical distance
    A vila fica a onze milhasThe village is eleven miles away.
    Comunicação à distância.Communication at a distance.
  4. with; by means of, using as an instrument or means
    Synonyms: com, por meio de
    Mataram o cão a pauladas.They bludgeoned the dog to death. (literally, “they killed the dog with bludgeonings”)
    A cavalo.On horseback.
    Livro escrito a lápis.A book written with a pencil.
  5. with; on, using as a medium or fuel
    Quadro pintado a óleo.A painting painted with oil.
    Fornalha a carvão.Coal furnace.
  6. by, using the specified measurement; in the specified quantity
    É mais barato comprar comida ao quilo.It is cheaper to by food by the kilogram.
    Os fracassos ocorrem às dezenas.Failures occur by the dozen.
  7. (preceded and followed by the same word) by, indicates a steady progression
    Synonym: por
    Calma lá. Resolva o problema passo a passo.Easy there. Solve the problem step by step.
  8. in the style or manner of; a la
    Synonym: ao modo de
    Ele puxou o temperamento ao pai.He inherited his temperament from his father.
    Camarão à grega.Greek-style shrimp.
  9. (limited use, see usage notes) at, during the specified period
    Synonyms: em, de
    Dormimos à noite.We sleep at night.
    O filme começa às duas horas.The film starts at two o’clock.
  10. (rare except in set terms) at; in, indicates a location or position
    Synonym: em
    Isto fica à frente do altar.This stays in front of the altar.
  11. indicates the direct object, mainly to avoid confusion when it, the subject, or both are displaced, or for emphasis
    A mim ele não engana.He doesn’t deceive me. (literally, “To me he doesn’t deceive.”)
  12. (followed by a verb in the infinitive form) forms the present participle
    Estou a preparar a canja.I am preparing the chicken soup.
  13. (followed by an infinitive or present passive) to, forms the future participle
    Synonyms: para, por
    Um trabalho a ser feito.A job to be done.
    Nada a fazer.Nothing to be done.
Usage notes[edit]

When followed by a definite article, a is combined with the article to give the following combined forms:

In the sense of to (introducing the indirect object) usage with a personal pronoun can be replaced with an indirect pronoun (me, nos, te, vos, lhe, lhes):

  • Deram um livro a ele.Deram-lhe um livro.

In the sense of at (during the specified period) it can be used with:

Dia (day), manhã (morning), madrugada (early morning) use de (of) instead, which can optionally be used for tarde, noitinha and noite as well. Names of months, days of the month and of the week use em (in).

Quotations[edit]

For quotations using this term, see Citations:a.

Descendants[edit]
  • Indo-Portuguese: a
See also[edit]

Etymology 4[edit]

Alternative forms[edit]

Interjection[edit]

a

  1. oh, expression of mild surprise
    A, tudo bem então.
    Oh, all right then.
Quotations[edit]

For quotations using this term, see Citations:a.

Etymology 5[edit]

From homophone .

Verb[edit]

a

  1. Misspelling of .
Quotations[edit]

For quotations using this term, see Citations:a.

Etymology 6[edit]

From homophone à.

Contraction[edit]

a

  1. Misspelling of à.
Quotations[edit]

For quotations using this term, see Citations:a.

Rapa Nui[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

  • IPA(key): /ˈa/
  • Hyphenation: a

Etymology 1[edit]

From Proto-Polynesian *a. Cognates include Maori a and Tongan ʻa.

Article[edit]

a

  1. the personal article, used before proper nouns

Etymology 2[edit]

From Proto-Nuclear Polynesian *a. Cognates include Hawaiian ā and Maori ā.

Preposition[edit]

a

  1. along, towards

References[edit]

  • Paulus Kieviet (2017) A grammar of Rapa Nui[15], Berlin: Language Science Press, →ISBN, page 102

Rawang[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Suffix[edit]

a

  1. verbal suffix for marking benefactive of the V.

Pronoun[edit]

a (upper case A)

  1. proximate demonstrative pronoun
    Alòng èlámò.
    Dry this one.
    Ló webǿng nàí baqòé, ngàí abǿng bakngò lé" wa.
    Well, you carry that side, I will carry this side.
    A wedø nø bvttut mvjòǃ
    Oh, it is absolutely wrong to do (it) that way.

Romagnol[edit]

Etymology 1[edit]

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

Alternative forms[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

  • (Central Romagnol): IPA(key): [ˈaɐ̯]
  • (San Zaccaria): IPA(key): [ˈaɐ]

Verb[edit]

a

  1. third-person singular/plural present indicative of avér (to have)

Etymology 2[edit]

From Latin ego.

Pronoun[edit]

a (plural a)

  1. (Ville Unite) I
  2. (Ville Unite) plural of a (we)
  3. (Ville Unite) plural of te (you)

Etymology 3[edit]

Inherited from Latin ad, a (to, toward).

Preposition[edit]

a

  1. to; at

Romani[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Etymology 1[edit]

Letter[edit]

a (lower case, upper case A)

  1. The first letter of the Romani alphabet, written in the Latin script.
See also[edit]

Etymology 2[edit]

Interjection[edit]

a

  1. oh, ah

References[edit]

  • Yūsuke Sumi (2018), “a”, in ニューエクスプレス ロマ(ジプシー)語 [New Express Romani (Gypsy)] (in Japanese), Tokyo: Hakusuisha, →ISBN, page 134

Romanian[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Letter[edit]

a (lower case, upper case A)

  1. The first letter of the Romanian alphabet, written in the Latin script.

See also[edit]

Etymology 1[edit]

Article[edit]

a

  1. feminine singular of al (of, possessive article)

Etymology 2[edit]

From Latin ad, from Proto-Indo-European *ád (near; at).

Preposition[edit]

a

  1. (used with infinitive verbs) the infinitive marker: to
    a fito be
  2. (obsolete) at (now almost completely replaced by la)
  3. (used only with a few perception verbs like suna, mirosi, arăta) like, of

Etymology 3[edit]

From Proto-Romanian, from a late Vulgar Latin *ae(t), from Latin habet.[1]

Verb[edit]

(el/ea) a (modal auxiliary, third-person singular form of avea, used with past participles to form perfect compus tenses)

  1. modal auxiliary
    (he/she) has...
    A văzut acest film?
    Has he/she seen this film?
Usage notes[edit]

a is used instead of are to form the third-person singular perfect compus.

References[edit]

Sardinian[edit]

Etymology 1[edit]

From Latin ac, alternative form of atque (and, and also; as, then).

Pronunciation[edit]

  • IPA(key): /a/ (triggers final cogemination (syntactic gemination of the initial consonant of the following word) in senses 1 and 2)

Conjunction[edit]

a

  1. (Nuorese) Only used in che a (like, as)
  2. (Campidanese) Only used in tottu a and a tottu
  3. used in the words for the numbers 17 and 19
    1. (Logudorese) Only used in degasette (seventeen)
    2. (Campidanese) Only used in dexasetti (seventeen) and degannoi (nineteen)
    3. (Nuorese) Only used in decassette (seventeen) and decannobe (nineteen)

Etymology 2[edit]

From Latin ad from Proto-Italic *ad, from Proto-Indo-European *h₂éd (near, at).

Alternative forms[edit]

  • ad (used before vowel-initial words)
  • an (Nuorese, before words starting with d-)

Pronunciation[edit]

  • IPA(key): (Logudorese, Nuorese) /a/ (triggers final cogemination (syntactic gemination of the initial consonant of the following word))
  • IPA(key): (Campidanese) /a/ (often does not trigger final cogemination)

Preposition[edit]

a

  1. indicates the indirect object; to
  2. indicates the place; in, to
  3. denotes the manner; with
    a pe' (Logudorese)on foot

Etymology 3[edit]

From Latin aut (or), from Proto-Italic *auti, from Proto-Indo-European *h₂ewti (on the other hand), derived from *h₂ew (away from, off). Doublet of o.

Pronunciation[edit]

  • IPA(key): /a/ (triggers final cogemination (syntactic gemination of the initial consonant of the following word))

Conjunction[edit]

a

  1. (central Sardinia) Used to introduce a question or an exhortation
    a benis?are you coming?
    a nos pasamos!Let's rest!
Usage notes[edit]
  • Used in expressions such as a chie ... a chie ... (Logudorese, Nuorese) and a chini ... a chini ... (Campidanese)
    a chie ridet, a chie pranghet (Nuorese)one laughs, the other one cries (literally, “[there's] who laughs, [there's] who cries”)
    • In these expressions, e can be used instead of a, though it's not common.
Derived terms[edit]

References[edit]

  • Wagner, Max Leopold (1960–1964), “a1”, in Dizionario etimologico sardo, Heidelberg
  • Wagner, Max Leopold (1960–1964), “a2”, in Dizionario etimologico sardo, Heidelberg
  • Wagner, Max Leopold (1960–1964), “a3”, in Dizionario etimologico sardo, Heidelberg

Sassarese[edit]

Alternative forms[edit]

  • ad (before a vowel)

Etymology[edit]

From Latin ad, from Proto-Italic *ad, from Proto-Indo-European *h₂éd.

Pronunciation[edit]

Preposition[edit]

a

  1. Used to indicate the target or recipient of an action; to, sometimes untranslated
    • 1866 [1770s], Antonio Martini, chapter VI, in Giovanni Spano, transl., L'ebagneliu sigundu S. Matteju [The Gospel according to St. Matthew]‎[16], London, translation of Il santo Vangelo di Gesù Cristo secondo Matteo (in Italian), verse 14, page 19:
      Si però no abeddi a paldunà all’ omini: nemmancu lu voltru Babbu paldunarà a voi li voltri piccaddi.
      [Si però no abeddi a pardhunà a l'omini: nemmancu lu vosthru Babbu pardhunarà a voi li vosthri piccaddi.]
      But, if you won't forgive man, neither will your Father forgive you for your sins.
    • c. 19th century, Sebastiano di Branca, “[untitled song]”, in Giovanni Spano, editor, Canti popolari in dialetto sassarese[17], volume 1 (overall work in Italian and Sassarese), Cagliari, published 1873, song 1, page 59:
      Divìlu a cha t’ha mandaddu
      Ch’iltoggu com’ edda sà,
      Ch’è superflu priguntà
      Com’ iltazi un dildiciaddu.
      [Dìvvilu a ca t'ha mandaddu
      Ch'isthoggu com' edda sa
      Ch'è superfluu priguntà
      Com' isthazi un disdhicciaddu.]
      Tell it to the one who sent you, that I feel exactly like she knows; for it is superfluous to ask an unfortunate how he's doing.
    • 1989, Giovanni Maria Cherchi, “Primabéra [Spring]”, in La poesia di l'althri (overall work in Sassarese and Italian), Sassari: Arnoldo Mondadori Editore, page 13:
      Lu branu a me no piazi
      I don't like spring
      (literally, “The spring to me is not pleasant”)
  2. Used to indicate destination; to
    • 1866 [1770s], Antonio Martini, chapter III, in Giovanni Spano, transl., L'ebagneliu sigundu S. Matteju [The Gospel according to St. Matthew]‎[18], London, translation of Il santo Vangelo di Gesù Cristo secondo Matteo (in Italian), verse 7, page 8:
      Videndi però assai di li Farisei, e di li Sadduzzei, chi viniani a lu so’ battisgimu, li dizisi: Razza di pibbari, ca vi ha ammultraddu di fuggì dall’ira, chi debi vinì?
      [Videndi però assai di li Farisei, e di li Sadduzzei, chi vinìani a lu so' battìsgimu, li dizisi: Razza di pìbbari, ca vi ha ammusthraddu di fuggì da l’ira, chi debi vinì?]
      But he, seeing many of the Pharisees and Sadducees, who were coming to his baptism, told them: "You vipers! Who showed you to flee from the wrath that is to come?
    • 1956, Salvator Ruju, “Pascha d’amòri [Easter of love]”, in Agnireddu e Rusina; republished as Caterina Ruju, editor, Sassari véccia e nóba, Nuoro: Ilisso edizioni, 2001, →ISBN, page 75:
      Chi prufumi di fiòri,
      canti disìzi i lu córi!
      Giunti sò li rissignóri
      a la Pascha di l’amòri.
      Such a sweet smell of flowers; so many desires inside the heart! The nightingales have come to the Easter of love.
  3. Used to indicate purpose; to
    • 1866 [1770s], Antonio Martini, chapter II, in Giovanni Spano, transl., L'ebagneliu sigundu S. Matteju [The Gospel according to St. Matthew]‎[19], London, translation of Il santo Vangelo di Gesù Cristo secondo Matteo (in Italian), verse 23, page 7:
      E andesi a abità in la ziddai, chi si ciama Nazaret
      And he went to live in the city that is called Nazareth
    • 1956, Salvator Ruju, “Nò è succu nò l'amòri [No, love is not pastina]”, in Agnireddu e Rusina; republished as Caterina Ruju, editor, Sassari véccia e nóba, Nuoro: Ilisso edizioni, 2001, →ISBN, page 61:
      Sòri e luna gira gira
      zi passabani li dì.
      Trabagliaba a fà siènda.
      Sun and moon going around, the days went by. I was working to make money.
  4. Used with adverbs expressing position or proximity; to, sometimes untranslated
    • 1866 [1770s], Antonio Martini, chapter IV, in Giovanni Spano, transl., L'ebagneliu sigundu S. Matteju [The Gospel according to St. Matthew]‎[20], London, translation of Il santo Vangelo di Gesù Cristo secondo Matteo (in Italian), verse 17, page 11:
      Caminendi però Gesù vizinu a lu mari di Galilea, vidisi due fraddeddi, Scimoni, chi si ciama Peddru, e Andria so’ fraddeddu, chi gittabani la rezza in mari (palchì erani pilcadori)
      [Caminendi però Gesù vizinu a lu mari di Galilea, vidisi due fraddeddi, Scimoni, chi si ciama Peddru, e Andria so’ fraddeddu, chi gittàbani la rezza in mari (parchì érani pischadori)]
      But Jesus, walking by the Sea of Galilee, saw two brothers: Simon, named Peter, and his brother Andrew, casting a drag into the sea (for they were fishers)
      (literally, “Walking however Jesus close to the sea of Galilee, saw two brothers, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother, who were throwing a net into the sea (because they were fishers)”)
    • 1956, Salvator Ruju, Sassari véccia e nóba; republished as Caterina Ruju, editor, Sassari véccia e nóba, Nuoro: Ilisso edizioni, 2001, →ISBN, page 77:
      Èdda è sèmpri cu la frébba
      candu noi passemu impari
      sott’a lu só balchòni.
      She always has a fever whenever we pass, together, under her balcony.
  5. Used to indicate a moment in time; at
    • 1956, Salvator Ruju, “In triatu [At the theater]”, in Agnireddu e Rusina; republished as Caterina Ruju, editor, Sassari véccia e nóba, Nuoro: Ilisso edizioni, 2001, →ISBN, page 78:
      Chi nuttada di duròri!
      Nò pudia più rassignammi
      ma se’ giunta a cunfurthammi
      a l’iscida di lu sòri.
      What a night of torment! I could no longer make peace with that, but you came to comfort me at the break of dawn.
      (literally, “What a night of pain! I couldn't anymore make peace, but you came to comfort me at the coming out of the sun.”)
    • 1989, Giovanni Maria Cherchi, “Dipididda [Departure]”, in La poesia di l'althri (overall work in Sassarese and Italian), Sassari: Arnoldo Mondadori Editore, page 15:
      Lu disthinu di l’ommu ciamba pianu,
      ma caggi a una zerth’ora []
      The fate of man changes slowly, but it arrives at some point
  6. Used to indicate a period of time; in
    • 1956, Salvator Ruju, “Nò è succu nò l'amòri [No, love is not pastina]”, in Agnireddu e Rusina; republished as Caterina Ruju, editor, Sassari véccia e nóba, Nuoro: Ilisso edizioni, 2001, →ISBN, page 61:
      A li festhi, dugna tantu,
      i l’isthagnu e i lu riu
      cazzïendi a spassamira.
      In the festivities, every so often, [I was] hunting in the pond, or in the stream, to have fun.
  7. in, about, with regard to
    • c. 19th century, anonymous author, “[untitled song]”, in Giovanni Spano, editor, Canti popolari in dialetto sassarese[21], volume 1 (overall work in Italian and Sassarese), Cagliari, published 1873, song 15, page 87:
      Dunca lu megliu è
      Tu pensa a la to’ pazi, ed eju a me.
      [Dunca lu mégliu è
      Tu pensa a la to' pazi, ed éiu a' me.]
      So the best [thing] is: you think about your own peace, and I [think] about myself.
    • 1989, Giovanni Maria Cherchi, “Un cuntaddu [A tale]”, in La poesia di l'althri (overall work in Sassarese and Italian), Sassari: Arnoldo Mondadori Editore, page 49:
      Erani amigghi cari, ma, girosi
      l’unu di l’althru, []
      []
      s’invintàbani umbè d’innamuraddi
      gariggendi a ca più fèmmini v'abìa.
      They were close friends, but, [being] jealous of one another, they would make up lots of lovers, competing for having the most girls.
      (literally, “They were dear friends, but, jealous one of the other, they invented lots of lovers, competing in who had the most girls.”)
  8. Used to indicate a comparison; to
    • 1866 [1770s], Antonio Martini, chapter VI, in Giovanni Spano, transl., L'ebagneliu sigundu S. Matteju [The Gospel according to St. Matthew]‎[22], London, translation of Il santo Vangelo di Gesù Cristo secondo Matteo (in Italian), verse 8, page 18:
      No vògliaddi dunca assimigliavvi a eddis. Palchì lu voltru Babbu sa lu chi è nezzessariu a voi, prima chi vi lu dimàndiaddi.
      [No vógliaddi dunca assimigliavvi a eddi. Parchì lu vosthru Babbu sa lu chi è nezzessàriu a voi, prima chi vi lu dimàndiaddi.]
      So do not be similar to them, because your Father knows what you need, before you ask him.
  9. Denotes the direct object
    • 1866 [1770s], Antonio Martini, chapter I, in Giovanni Spano, transl., L'ebagneliu sigundu S. Matteju [The Gospel according to St. Matthew]‎[23], London, translation of Il santo Vangelo di Gesù Cristo secondo Matteo (in Italian), verse 2, page 1:
      Abramu generesi a Isaccu. Isaccu generesi a Giacobbu. Giacobbu generesi a Giuda, e a li so’ fraddeddi.
      Abraham begot Isaac, and Isaac begot Jacob, and Jacob begot Judah and his brothers
    • c. 19th century, Gavino Serra, “[untitled song]”, in Giovanni Spano, editor, Canti popolari in dialetto sassarese[24], volume 2 (overall work in Italian and Sassarese), Cagliari, song 42, page 129:
      Di tanti cantendi, e tanti
      Mancuna incantesi a me,
      Ma da ch’aggiu intesu a te
      Tu sei l’unica ch’incanti.
      Of so, so many singers, not one enchanted me; yet, since I've heard you, you're the only one who enchants.
    • 1956, Salvator Ruju, “Tuttu m’ammentu… [I remember everything…]”, in Agnireddu e Rusina, page 123; republished as Caterina Ruju, editor, Sassari véccia e nóba, Nuoro: Ilisso edizioni, 2001, →ISBN:
      E nò l’aggiu iparadi chissi ingordhi
      isthruidori d’abi
      pa cuntintà a tè.
      And I didn't shoot those greedy destroyers of bees, just to make you happy.
    • 1989, Giovanni Maria Cherchi, “Lu trabagliu [Work]”, in La poesia di l'althri (overall work in Italian and Sassarese), Sassari: Arnoldo Mondadori Editore, page 23:
      Abà zappu una terra asciutta e tóstha
      azzuppendi a la rocca,
      a la prunizza. []
      Here I hoe dry, hard land, clashing against rock and thornbush.
  10. Indicates manner.
    • c. 19th century, anonymous author, “[untitled song]”, in Giovanni Spano, editor, Canti popolari in dialetto sassarese[25], volume 2 (overall work in Italian and Sassarese), Cagliari, song 15, page 90:
      A cori abbeltu e cun sinziriddai
      Ti diggu chi soggu omu
      [A cori abbérthu e cun sinziriddai
      Ti diggu chi soggu omu]
      With an open heart, and with honesty, I tell you that I am a man
    • 1956, Salvator Ruju, “In triatu [At the theater]”, in Agnireddu e Rusina; republished as Caterina Ruju, editor, Sassari véccia e nóba, Nuoro: Ilisso edizioni, 2001, →ISBN, page 78:
      E più bèdda éri di tanti
      chi i li palchi a mill’ischudi,
      a pittorri e a brazzi nudi,
      facci tinti e in brillanti,
      mi pariani puppì
      assintadi i la musthrina.
      And you were more beautiful than so many [others], who—on thousand-dollars stages, with bare breasts and arms, painted faces, and bejewelled, looked to me like dolls set in a showcase.
      (literally, “And more beautiful you were than many who on the stages for a thousand scudos, with breasts and with arms bare, faces painted and in jewels, to me seemed dolls sat in the showcase.”)
  11. Indicates shape.
    • 1956, Salvator Ruju, “Ischolta, Rimundì! [Listen, Raimondica!]”, in Agnireddu e Rusina; republished as Caterina Ruju, editor, Sassari véccia e nóba, Nuoro: Ilisso edizioni, 2001, →ISBN, page 70:
      Peggiu pa tè chi sei fea,
      nasu a boccia e musthazzuda,
      faccia di giàtta marruda,
      vèrdhi cument’e la zèa.
      Sucks to be you, being ugly, [with a] ball-shaped nose, and moustached, [with a] sharp catlike face, green like beet.
  12. Used to introduce a question.
    • 1956, Salvator Ruju, “Màggiu [May]”, in Agnireddu e Rusina; republished as Caterina Ruju, editor, Sassari véccia e nóba, Nuoro: Ilisso edizioni, 2001, →ISBN, page 81:
      A mi credi, Rusì, ch’era pinsendi
      a Giuseppinu candu sarà mannu?
      Mi pari di vidéllu a cabidannu
      in mézu a tutti l’althri vinnannendi.
      Can you believe, Rosina, that I was thinking about Giuseppino, when he's going to be grown up? I can almost see him, in September, harvesting grapes amongst all the others.
      (literally, “Do you believe me, Rosina, that I was thinking about Giuseppino, when he will be big? It seems to me to see him in September in the middle of all the others harvesting grapes.”)
    • 2020 March 25, Ignazio Sanna, “Di nomme fozzu Asdrubale [My name is Asdrubale]”, in Ignazio Sanna - Prosa e poesia in sassarese[26]:
      Ma tu ca sei? Da undi n’accùdi? Ah, t’abìa invitaddu Antonio? A lu sai chi da abà ti baddarài di lu frèddu a la sóra?
      Who are you? Where are you from? Oh, so Antonio invited you? Do you know that from now on you're going to dance alone in the cold?

References[edit]

  • Rubattu, Antoninu (2006) Dizionario universale della lingua di Sardegna, 2nd edition, Sassari: Edes

Satawalese[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

IPA(key): /a/

Pronoun[edit]

a (third-person singular)

  1. he
  2. she
  3. it

References[edit]

Kevin M. Roddy (2007), "A Sketch Grammar Of Satawalese, The Language Of Satawal Island, Yap State, Micronesia"

Scots[edit]

Etymology 1[edit]

Letter[edit]

a (lower case, upper case A)

  1. The first letter of the Scots alphabet, written in the Latin script.
See also[edit]

Etymology 2[edit]

From Middle English a, from Old English ān (one; a; lone; sole).

Pronunciation[edit]

Article[edit]

a

  1. a, an (indefinite article)
Usage notes[edit]
  • Unlike English, this form can be used before both consonant and vowel sounds. However, this is not often the case in written Scots, probably due to the influence of English. [1]
Synonyms[edit]
  • (before a vowel): an

References[edit]

Etymology 3[edit]

Determiner[edit]

a

  1. Alternative form of a'

Adverb[edit]

a

  1. Alternative form of a'

Noun[edit]

a (uncountable)

  1. Alternative form of a'

References[edit]

Scottish Gaelic[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

  • IPA(key): (etymologies 2-8) /ə/, (etymologies 1 and 9) /a/
  • Hyphenation: a

Etymology 1[edit]

Letter[edit]

a (lower case, upper case A)

  1. The first letter of the Scottish Gaelic alphabet, written in the Latin script. It is followed by b. Its traditional name is ailm (elm).
See also[edit]

Etymology 2[edit]

From Old Irish a, from Proto-Celtic . Cognates include Irish a and Welsh a.

Particle[edit]

a (triggers lenition)

  1. Used to mark a vocative; O
    Halò, a Ruairidh.Hello, (O) Roderick.

Etymology 3[edit]

From Old Irish a. Cognates include Irish a.

Determiner[edit]

a

  1. (triggers lenition) his, its
  2. (triggers H-prothesis) her, its
See also[edit]

Etymology 4[edit]

From Old Irish a. Cognates include Irish a.

Pronoun[edit]

a (governs the relative form of the verb)

  1. who, which, that
    Cuin a chluinneas tu e?When will you hear it? (literally, “When [is it] that you will hear it?”)

Etymology 5[edit]

From Old Irish a. Cognates include Irish a.

Particle[edit]

a (triggers H-prothesis)

  1. Used before cardinal numbers not succeded by a noun
    A bheil agad a ceithir?Do you have four?

Etymology 6[edit]

From Old Irish a. Cognates include Irish a.

Particle[edit]

a (triggers lenition)

  1. Used to mark the infinitive of a verb; to
    Tha mi a' dol a chadal.I'm going to sleep.

Etymology 7[edit]

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

Preposition[edit]

a (+ dative, triggers lenition of consonants and Dh-prothesis of vowels)

  1. Reduced form of do
  2. Reduced form of de

Etymology 8[edit]

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

Particle[edit]

a (triggers lenition)

  1. Form of an used before bheil
Usage notes[edit]
  • Less frequently, am may be used before bheil as well.

Etymology 9[edit]

Interjection[edit]

a!

  1. ah!
Alternative forms[edit]

References[edit]

  • MacBain, Alexander; Mackay, Eneas (1911), “a”, in An Etymological Dictionary of the Gaelic Language, Stirling, →ISBN
  • Colin Mark (2003) The Gaelic-English dictionary, London: Routledge, →ISBN, page 1
  • Edward Dwelly (1911), “a”, in Faclair Gàidhlig gu Beurla le Dealbhan [The Illustrated Gaelic–English Dictionary], 10th edition, Edinburgh: Birlinn Limited, →ISBN

Serbo-Croatian[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Etymology 1[edit]

See Translingual section.

Letter[edit]

a (lower case, upper case A)

  1. The 1st letter of the Serbo-Croatian Latin alphabet (gajica), followed by b.

Etymology 2[edit]

From Proto-Slavic *a (and, but).

Conjunction[edit]

a (Cyrillic spelling а)

  1. but, and (compare ȁli)
    Učio sam c(ij)elo posl(ij)epodne, a ništa nisam naučio.I studied for the whole afternoon, but I didn't learn anything.
    A kako biste vi to napravili?And how would you do that?
  2. while (on the contrary), whereas
    Stolovi su crveni, a stolice su zelene.The tables are red, whereas the chairs are green.
  3. (with da ne) without (usually after negative verbs)
    Ne mogu se uključiti u raspravu, a da ne napravim nered.I cannot enter a discussion without making a mess.
    Odlazi, a da nije rekao ni zbogom.He's leaving without even saying goodbye.
  4. (a ȉpāk) and yet
    Pravi prijatelj zna sve o tebi, a ipak te voli.The real friend knows everything about you, and yet he loves you.
  5. (a kȁmoli) not to mention, let alone
    U moru loših v(ij)esti teško je ostati objektivan, a kamoli optimističan.In the sea of bad news it's hard to stay objective, let alone optimistic.
  6. (a + i + da) even if
    A i da jesam to napravio, ne bi to učinilo neku razliku.Even if I did it, it wouldn't have made much of a difference.
  7. (a + i) and so, and also, and too
    Sviđaju mi se plavuše, a i ja se pokojoj svidim.I like blondes, and some of them even like me.
    Bili su žalosni, a i ja sam.They were sad, and so am I.

Etymology 3[edit]

Attested since the 15th century. Probably of onomatopoeic origin. Compare Slovene a, Russian а (a), Lithuanian õ, Latin ō and Ancient Greek (ô). These could all derive from Proto-Indo-European interjection (oh, ah), but each form in individual languages could easily be an independent, expressive formation.

Interjection[edit]

a (Cyrillic spelling а)

  1. oh, ah
    a da?oh really?

References[edit]

  • a” in Hrvatski jezični portal
  • a” in Hrvatski jezični portal
  • Skok, Petar (1971), “a”, in Etimologijski rječnik hrvatskoga ili srpskoga jezika [Etymological Dictionary of the Croatian or Serbian Language] (in Serbo-Croatian), volume 1 (A – J), Zagreb: JAZU, page 1

Sicilian[edit]

Etymology 1[edit]

From Latin ā (the name of the letter A).

Pronunciation[edit]

Noun[edit]

a f

  1. The name of the Latin-script letter A.; a

Etymology 2[edit]

From the lenition of la, from the apheresis of Vulgar Latin *illa, from Latin illam, from illa.

Pronunciation[edit]

Article[edit]

a f sg (m u, plural i)

  1. the (feminine singular definite article)
    Synonym: la
Usage notes[edit]
  • As for other Romance languages, such as Neapolitan or Portuguese, Sicilian definite articles have undergone a consonant lenition that has led to the phonetic fall of the initial l. The use of this illiquid variant has not yet made the use of liquid variants disappear, but today it is still the prevalent use in speech and writing.
  • In the case of the production of literary texts, such as singing or poetry, or of formal and institutional texts, resorting to "liquid articles" and "liquid articulated prepositions" confers greater euphony to the text, although it may sound a form of courtly recovery.
  • Illiquid definite articles can be phonetically absorbed by the following noun. I.e: l'arancina (liquid) and ârancina (illiquid).
Inflection[edit]
Sicilian articles
Masculine singular definite article Feminine singular definite article Masculine and feminine plural definite article
Definite articles (liquid) lu la li
Definite articles (illiquid) u a i
Definite articles nu
(also: un,'n)
na

Etymology 3[edit]

From the lenition of la, from the apheresis of Vulgar Latin *illa, from Latin illam, from illa.

Alternative forms[edit]

  • la (liquid form)

Pronunciation[edit]

Pronoun[edit]

a f sg (plural i, masculine u)

  1. (accusative) her
    Synonym: la
    A canusci?Do you know her?
  2. (accusative) it, this or that thing
    Synonym: la
    Quannu desi.When I gave it to you.
Usage notes[edit]
  • This pronoun can blend in contracted forms with other particles, especially other personal pronominal particles.
Inflection[edit]
Sicilian pronominal particles
Masculine singular pronominal particles Feminine singular pronominal particles Masculine and feminine plural pronominal particles
mi
ti
ci ci u ci a
ni
vi
ci ci u ci a

Etymology 4[edit]

From the merge of Latin ad and ab.

Preposition[edit]

a

  1. indicates the indirect object; to
    Porta stu panaru â nanna.
    Bring this basket to grandma.
    Ê jatti ci piàciunu i pisci.
    Cats like fish.
    (literally, “Fish are pleasable to cats.”)
    E mû dumanni a mìa?
    You're asking that to me?
  2. indicates the place, used in some contexts, in others in is used; in, to
    Jemu â casa?
    Can we go home?
    (literally, “Can we go to the home?”)
    Cchiui staju a Palermu, a Ruma cci tornu dumani.
    I'm in Palermo now, I'll go back to Rome tomorrow.
  3. denotes the manner; with
    a pedi, a muzzu(please add an English translation of this usage example)
  4. denotes the direct object, but only if it's not preceded by articles
    Chiama a Paulu.
    Call Paolo.
    E nun ni vidisti cchiui a nuiautri?
    And you didn't see us?
    the "us" here is repeated twice for emphasis
    Ascutassi a mìa, signù!
    Listen to me, ma'am!
Usage notes[edit]
  • When followed by a word that begins with a vowel sound, the form ad (also rhotacized as ar) is used instead.
  • When followed by the definite article, a combines with the article to produce the following combined forms:
a + article Combined form
a + u ô
a + lu a lu
a + a â
a + la a la
a + i ê
a + li a li

Etymology 5[edit]

Verb[edit]

a

  1. Misspelling of àvi.

Silesian[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

  • IPA(key): /ˈa/
  • Rhymes: -a
  • Syllabification: a

Etymology 1[edit]

The Silesian orthography is based on the Latin alphabet. No earlier script is known. See the Silesian language article on Wikipedia for more, and a for development of the glyph itself.

Letter[edit]

a (lower case, upper case A)

  1. The first letter of the Silesian alphabet, written in the Latin script.

See also[edit]

Etymology 2[edit]

Inherited from Old Polish a.

Conjunction[edit]

a

  1. and (used to continue a previous statement or to add to it)
  2. and, but, whereas (used contrastively)
  3. and then (used to say an event will occur if some requirement is fulfilled)
  4. and (used for clairification)

Particle[edit]

a

  1. intensifies agreement

Etymology 3[edit]

Inherited from Old Polish a, from Proto-Slavic *a.

Interjection[edit]

a

  1. interjection that expresses various emotions; ah!

Further reading[edit]

  • a in dykcjonorz.eu
  • a in silling.org

Skolt Sami[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Etymology 1[edit]

See Translingual section.

Letter[edit]

a (upper case A)

  1. The first letter of the Skolt Sami alphabet, written in the Latin script.
See also[edit]

Etymology 2[edit]

Borrowed from Russian а (a) 'but'.[1]

Conjunction[edit]

a

  1. but
  2. how, what about

References[edit]

  1. ^ Juutinen, Markus. 2022. “Russian Loanwords in Skolt Saami”. Finnisch-Ugrische Forschungen 2022 (67):75–126. https://doi.org/10.33339/fuf.110737.

Further reading[edit]

  • Koponen, Eino; Ruppel, Klaas; Aapala, Kirsti, editors (2002–2008) Álgu database: Etymological database of the Saami languages[27], Helsinki: Research Institute for the Languages of Finland

Slovak[edit]

Etymology 1[edit]

From Latin a, form of A, from Etruscan 𐌀 (a), from Ancient Greek Α (A, alpha), from Phoenician 𐤀 (ʾ, aleph), from Egyptian 𓃾.

Letter[edit]

a (upper case A)

  1. The first letter of the Slovak alphabet, written in the Latin script.
See also[edit]

Etymology 2[edit]

From Proto-Slavic *a (and, but).

Conjunction[edit]

a

  1. and
Derived terms[edit]

Further reading[edit]

  • a”, in Slovníkový portál Jazykovedného ústavu Ľ. Štúra SAV [Dictionary portal of the Ľ. Štúr Institute of Linguistics, Slovak Academy of Science] (in Slovak), https://slovnik.juls.savba.sk, 2024

Slovene[edit]

Slovene Wikipedia has an article on:
Wikipedia sl

Etymology 1[edit]

From Gaj's Latin alphabet a, from Czech alphabet a, modification of capital A, itself derived from the Etruscan letter 𐌀 (a), from the Ancient Greek letter Α (A, alpha), derived from the Phoenician letter 𐤀 (ʾ, aleph), from the Egyptian hieroglyph 𓃾.

Pronunciation[edit]

  • (phoneme, tonal variety): IPA(key): /áː/, /àː/, /ʌ́/, /a/, [â], [ǎ]
  • (phoneme, non-tonal variety): IPA(key): /aː/, /a/
  • (letter name): IPA(key): /àː/, /áː/
  • (file)
  • Rhymes: -aː
  • Homophone: a

Letter[edit]

a (lower case, upper case A)

  1. The first letter of the Slovene alphabet, written in the Latin script.
  2. The first letter of the Slovene alphabet, written in the Latin script.
  3. The first letter of the Slovene alphabet, written in the Latin script.

Symbol[edit]

a

  1. (SNPT) Phonetic transcription of sound [a].

Noun[edit]

ā m inan

  1. The name of the Latin script letter A / a.
  2. The name of the phonemes /a, , ʌ/.
Inflection[edit]
  • Overall more common
The diacritics used in this section of the entry are non-tonal. If you are a native tonal speaker, please help by adding the tonal marks.
Masculine inan., soft o-stem
nom. sing. ā
gen. sing. ā-ja
singular dual plural
nominative
(imenovȃlnik)
ā ā-ja ā-ji
genitive
(rodȋlnik)
ā-ja ā-jev ā-jev
dative
(dajȃlnik)
ā-ju ā-jema ā-jem
accusative
(tožȋlnik)
ā ā-ja ā-je
locative
(mẹ̑stnik)
ā-ju ā-jih ā-jih
instrumental
(orọ̑dnik)
ā-jem ā-jema ā-ji
  • More common when with a definite adjective
Masculine inan., no endings
nom. sing. ā
gen. sing. ā
singular dual plural
nominative ā ā ā
accusative ā ā ā
genitive ā ā ā
dative ā ā ā
locative ā ā ā
instrumental ā ā ā

Derived terms[edit]

Etymology 2[edit]

Attested since the 18th century. Probably of onomatopoeic origin. Compare Serbo-Croatian a, Russian а (a), Lithuanian õ, Latin ō and Ancient Greek (ô). These could all derive from Proto-Indo-European interjection (oh, ah), but each form in individual languages could easily be an independent, expressive formation.

Pronunciation[edit]

  • IPA(key): /àː/, /áː/, /á/
  • (file)
  • (file)

Interjection[edit]

a

  1. oh
  2. Used at the end of a sentence for confirmation, similarly to 'didn't I' in English.
    Tega nisi pričakoval, a?You did not expect this, did you?
Synonyms[edit]

Etymology 3[edit]

From Proto-Slavic *a, from Proto-Indo-European *ō̃t, which is ablative form of Proto-Indo-European *e- 'this'. Cognates with Serbo-Croatian a, Russian а (a) and Czech a.

Pronunciation[edit]

Conjunction[edit]

a

  1. but
    Synonyms: in, pa, toda, vendar

Particle[edit]

a

  1. contracted form of ali, particle used to form a yes- no question.
    Synonyms: kaj, ali

See also[edit]

Further reading[edit]

  • a”, in Slovarji Inštituta za slovenski jezik Frana Ramovša ZRC SAZU, portal Fran

Slovincian[edit]

Etymology 1[edit]

Inherited from Proto-Slavic *a (and; but), from Proto-Balto-Slavic , ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *éy. Compare Kashubian a, Polish a.

Conjunction[edit]

a

  1. and
    Synonym: ä
  2. and, but, whereas
Derived terms[edit]
conjunctions

Etymology 2[edit]

Inherited from Proto-Slavic *a (ah!), from Proto-Balto-Slavic . Compare Kashubian a, Polish a.

Interjection[edit]

ã

  1. ah!
    Synonyms: ãχ, ãi̯, ǻu̯

References[edit]

Spanish[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Etymology 1[edit]

Letter[edit]

a (lower case, upper case A)

  1. The first letter of the Spanish alphabet, written in the Latin script.

Noun[edit]

a f (plural aes)

  1. Name of the letter A.
See also[edit]

Etymology 2[edit]

From Latin ad (to).

Alternative forms[edit]

  • (obsolete) á
  • (obsolete) à

Preposition[edit]

a

  1. to
    • 1605, Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra, Don Quijote de la Mancha1, Chapter I:
      Tenía en su casa una ama que pasaba de los cuarenta y una sobrina que no llegaba a los veinte, y un mozo de campo y plaza que así ensillaba el rocín como tomaba la podadera.
      He had in his house a housekeeper past forty, a niece under twenty, and a lad for the field and market-place, who used to saddle the hack as well as handle the billhook.
  2. by
  3. at
  4. Used before words referring to people, pets, or personified objects or places that function as direct objects: personal a.
    Lo busca a usted.
    He is looking for you.
Usage notes[edit]
  • Personal a is not translated into English.
Derived terms[edit]
See also[edit]

Sranan Tongo[edit]

Pronoun[edit]

a

  1. he, she, it
    • ca. 1765, Pieter van Dyk, Nieuwe en nooit bevoorens geziene Onderwyzinge in het Bastert, of Neeger Engels, zoo als het zelve in de Hollandsze Colonien gebruikt word [New and unprecedented instruction in Bastard or Negro English, as it is used in the Dutch colonies]‎[28], Frankfurt/Madrid: Iberoamericana, retrieved 20 March 2021:
      Odi mijn heer hoe fa joe tan gran tanki fo myn heer a komi ja fo loeke da pranasie wan trom.
      Good day, Sir, how are you? Many thanks to Sir, (that) he has come here to look at the plantation on this occasion.

Article[edit]

a (singular)

  1. the

Usage notes[edit]

Sranan Tongo makes no difference between singular and plural forms, except for pronouns and determiners and the definite article. Common nouns referring to a collection of similar items are usually treated as singular where in English they would be grammatically plural, and so are referred to with singular pronouns and determiners and the singular definite article.

Preposition[edit]

a

  1. at, to
    Synonym: na

Particle[edit]

a

  1. (copula) to be (used with a noun phrase as complement)
    Synonym: na

Usage notes[edit]

This particle is only used when the temporal aspect is unmarked, whether for timeless facts, or for statements where time is not considered relevant.

Sumerian[edit]

Romanization[edit]

a

  1. Romanization of 𒀀 (a)

Swahili[edit]

Particle[edit]

-a

  1. The genitive particle; adjectival particle; of

Usage notes[edit]

Inflection[edit]

See also[edit]

Swedish[edit]

Preposition[edit]

a

  1. from (very formal, seldom used outside written formal texts.)

Usage notes[edit]

See also[edit]

Letter[edit]

a (name a, uppercase form A)

  1. The first letter of the Swedish alphabet, written in the Latin script.

See also[edit]

Interjection[edit]

a

  1. (Internet slang, text messaging) Pronunciation spelling of ja (yes).
    aa d ere
    yeah, it is

Usage notes[edit]

Often with multiple As. From an extended (and doubly emphasized – compare mhm) A being used as an agreeing or affirmative response in spoken Swedish.

Tagalog[edit]

Etymology 1[edit]

From Spanish a. Each pronunciation has a different source:

  • Filipino alphabet pronunciation is influenced by English a.
  • Abakada alphabet pronunciation is influenced by Baybayin character (a).
  • Abecedario pronunciation is from Spanish a.

Pronunciation[edit]

  • Hyphenation: a
  • (letter name, Filipino alphabet): IPA(key): /ˈʔej/, [ˈʔɛɪ̯]
  • (letter name, Abakada alphabet, Abecedario): IPA(key): /ˈʔa/, [ˈʔɐ]
  • (phoneme): IPA(key): /a/, [ɐ]
  • Rhymes: -ej, -a

Letter[edit]

a (lower case, upper case A, Baybayin spelling ᜁᜌ᜔)

  1. The first letter of the Tagalog alphabet (Filipino alphabet), called ey and written in the Latin script.

Letter[edit]

a (lower case, upper case A, Baybayin spelling )

  1. The first letter of the Tagalog alphabet (Abakada alphabet), called a and written in the Latin script.
  2. (historical) The first letter of the Tagalog alphabet (Abecedario), called a and written in the Latin script.
See also[edit]

Noun[edit]

a (Baybayin spelling )

  1. the name of the Latin-script letter A, in the Abakada alphabet.
    Synonym: (in the Filipino alphabet) ey
  2. (historical) the name of the Latin-script letter A, in the Abecedario.
    Synonym: (in the Filipino alphabet) ey
Related terms[edit]
See also[edit]

Etymology 2[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

  • Hyphenation: a
  • IPA(key): /ˈʔa/, [ˈʔɐ]
  • Rhymes: -a

Interjection[edit]

a (Baybayin spelling )

  1. ah: an exclamation of pity, admiration or surprise
    A! Kailan namatay ang iyong ina?Ah! When did your mother die?
  2. oh (expression of understanding or realization)
    Synonym: aw

Alternative forms[edit]

Etymology 3[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

  • Hyphenation: a
  • IPA(key): /ˈʔaʔ/, [ˈʔɐʔ]
  • Rhymes: -aʔ

Interjection[edit]

â (Baybayin spelling )

  1. (informal) ouch (expression of pain)
    Synonyms: aray, aw
Alternative forms[edit]

Etymology 4[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

  • Hyphenation: a
  • IPA(key): /ˈʔa/, [ˈʔɐ]
  • Rhymes: -a

Particle[edit]

a (Baybayin spelling )

  1. Alternative form of ha (sentence-ending particle)
Alternative forms[edit]

Further reading[edit]

  • a”, in Pambansang Diksiyonaryo | Diksiyonaryo.ph, Manila, 2018

Tarantino[edit]

Preposition[edit]

a

  1. in
  2. at
  3. to

Tày[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Etymology 1[edit]

Particle[edit]

a ()

  1. alright?; okay?; will you?
    Chin a.Let's eat.
    Mừa a.Let's go home.
  2. already
    Chư̱ a.Oh right.
Derived terms[edit]

Etymology 2[edit]

From Proto-Tai *ʔaːᴬ (father's younger sister). Cognate with Lao ອາ (ʼā), Thai อา (aa).

Noun[edit]

a ()

  1. paternal aunt
    me̱ a(please add an English translation of this usage example)
  2. younger sister
    a noọng(please add an English translation of this usage example)
Derived terms[edit]

References[edit]

  • Hoàng Văn Ma; Lục Văn Pảo; Hoàng Chí (2006) Từ điển Tày-Nùng-Việt [Tay-Nung-Vietnamese dictionary] (in Vietnamese), Hanoi: Nhà xuất bản Từ điển Bách khoa Hà Nội
  • Lương Bèn (2011) Từ điển Tày-Việt [Tay-Vietnamese dictionary]‎[29][30] (in Vietnamese), Thái Nguyên: Nhà Xuất bản Đại học Thái Nguyên
  • Lục Văn Pảo; Hoàng Tuấn Nam (2003), Hoàng Triều Ân, editor, Từ điển chữ Nôm Tày [A Dictionary of (chữ) Nôm Tày]‎[31] (in Vietnamese), Hanoi: Nhà xuất bản Khoa học Xã hội

Tok Pisin[edit]

Etymology[edit]

Imitative or onomatopoeia.

Interjection[edit]

a

  1. eh?
    • 1989, Buk Baibel long Tok Pisin, Port Moresby: Bible Society of Papua New Guinea, Jenesis 3:1:
      God, Bikpela i bin wokim olgeta animal, tasol i no gat wanpela bilong ol inap winim snek long tok gris. Na snek i askim meri olsem, “Ating God i tambuim yutupela long kaikai pikinini bilong olgeta diwai bilong gaden, a?”
      →New International Version translation

Tokelauan[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Etymology 1[edit]

From Proto-Polynesian *a. Cognates include Maori a and Tuvaluan a.

Article[edit]

a

  1. a personal article, used after the prepositions i and ki and before personal names or names of months
Derived terms[edit]
See also[edit]

Etymology 2[edit]

From Proto-Polynesian *qa. Cognates include Hawaiian a and Samoan a.

Preposition[edit]

a

  1. marks alienable possession; of
See also[edit]

References[edit]

  • R. Simona, editor (1986) Tokelau Dictionary[32], Auckland: Office of Tokelau Affairs, page 1

Tooro[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Particle[edit]

-a

  1. The genitive particle; adjectival particle; of

Declension[edit]

References[edit]

  • Kaji, Shigeki (2007) A Rutooro Vocabulary[33] (in English), Tokyo: Research Institute for Languages and Cultures of Asia and Africa (ILCAA), →ISBN, page 415

Turkish[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Letter[edit]

a (lower case, upper case A)

  1. The first letter of the Turkish alphabet, written in the Latin script.

See also[edit]

Noun[edit]

a

  1. The name of the Latin script letter A/a.

See also[edit]

Turkmen[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

  • (phoneme) IPA(key): /a/, /aː/

Letter[edit]

a (upper case A)

  1. The first letter of the Turkmen alphabet, written in the Latin script.

See also[edit]

Tyap[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

  • (phoneme) IPA(key): /a/, /aː/

Letter[edit]

a (upper case A)

  1. The first letter of the Tyap alphabet, written in the Latin script.

Interjection[edit]

a

  1. ah (expression of surprise, question)
  2. eh (expression of reluctance)

Pronoun[edit]

a

  1. you (2nd person subject singular personal pronoun)

Pronoun[edit]

  1. he/she (3rd person singular personal pronoun)

Pronunciation[edit]

Pronoun[edit]

á̱

  1. they (indefinite) (3rd person plural personal pronoun)

Pronunciation[edit]

See also[edit]


Upper Sorbian[edit]

Conjunction[edit]

a

  1. and
  2. the (establishing a parallel between two comparatives)
    starši a mudrišithe older, the smarter
    dlěje a hórjethe longer, the worse

Further reading[edit]

  • a” in Soblex

Vietnamese[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Etymology 1[edit]

Borrowed from French a.

Letter[edit]

a (lower case, upper case A)

  1. The first letter of the Vietnamese alphabet, written in the Latin script.

Noun[edit]

a

  1. The name of the Latin-script letter A.

See also[edit]

Etymology 2[edit]

Noun[edit]

(classifier cái) a ()

  1. a cutting tool consisting of two blades inserted into a long handle to cut grass or to harvest rice
    Synonyms: trang, gạc
    rèn một lưỡi a bằng ba lưỡi hái
    (please add an English translation of this usage example)

Etymology 3[edit]

Verb[edit]

a

  1. to rush or charge forward at
    Synonyms: trang, gạc
    a vào giật cho bằng được
    (please add an English translation of this usage example)

Etymology 4[edit]

Pronoun[edit]

a

  1. (slang, Internet, text messaging) Abbreviation of anh.

Etymology 5[edit]

Particle[edit]

a

  1. (rare) Used to indicate a question that is asked out of perplexity or sarcasm.
    Bây giờ mới đi a?
    You've only been going just now?
    Thật thế a?
    Really?

Etymology 6[edit]

Interjection[edit]

a

  1. An expression of happiness, surprise or of a sudden remembrance of something.
    A mẹ đã về!
    Oh, my mom came home!
    A, mình nhớ ra rồi!
    Oh, I remember!

Votic[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

  • (Luutsa, Liivtšülä) IPA(key): /ˈɑ/, [ˈɑ]
  • Rhymes:
  • Hyphenation: a

Etymology 1[edit]

Letter[edit]

a

  1. The first letter of the Votic alphabet, written in the Latin script.

Etymology 2[edit]

Borrowed from Russian а (a).

Conjunction[edit]

a

  1. but (Following a negative clause or sentence) On the contrary, but rather
  2. However, although, nevertheless, on the other hand

Etymology 3[edit]

Natural. Compare Russian а (a).

Interjection[edit]

a

  1. ah!, oh!
  2. oops!
  3. ouch!

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  • Hallap, V.; Adler, E.; Grünberg, S.; Leppik, M. (2012) Vadja keele sõnaraamat [A dictionary of the Votic language]‎[34], 2nd edition, Tallinn

Walloon[edit]

Etymology[edit]

From Latin ad.

Pronunciation[edit]

Preposition[edit]

a

  1. at

Welsh[edit]

Etymology 1[edit]

Alternative forms[edit]

  • (with grave accent to indicate otherwise unpredictable short vowel) à
  • (with acute accent to indicate unusually stressed short vowel) á
  • (with circumflex to indicate otherwise unpredictable or unusually stressed long vowel) â
  • (with diaeresis to indicate disyllabicity) ä

Pronunciation[edit]

Letter[edit]

a (lower case, upper case A)

  1. The first letter of the Welsh alphabet, called a and written in the Latin script. It is followed by b.
Mutation[edit]
  • a cannot be mutated but, being a vowel, does take h-prothesis, for example with the word afal (apple):
Welsh mutation
radical soft nasal h-prothesis
afal unchanged unchanged hafal
Note: Some of these forms may be hypothetical. Not every possible mutated form of every word actually occurs.
Derived terms[edit]
See also[edit]

Noun[edit]

a f (plural âu)

  1. The name of the Latin-script letter A.
Mutation[edit]
Welsh mutation
radical soft nasal h-prothesis
a unchanged unchanged ha
Note: Some of these forms may be hypothetical. Not every possible mutated form of every word actually occurs.

Etymology 2[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Verb[edit]

a

  1. (colloquial) first-person singular future of mynd
Synonyms[edit]
  • af (literary)

Etymology 3[edit]

From Old Welsh a(c), from Proto-Brythonic *(h)a, from Proto-Indo-European *ad-gʰe (compare Welsh ag and Cornish ha).

Pronunciation[edit]

Conjunction[edit]

a (triggers aspirate mutation (but not always in colloquial language))

  1. and
Synonyms[edit]
  • ac (used before a vowel)

Etymology 4[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Pronoun[edit]

a (triggers soft mutation)

  1. (relative) that, which, who (used in 'direct' relative clauses, i.e. where the pronoun refers to the subject or the direct object of an inflected verb (as opposed to a periphrastic construction with bod, to be)).
    Y dyn a welais iThe man whom I saw
Usage notes[edit]
  1. a is not used with the third person singular present of the verb bod, where the relative verb form sydd is used instead
    Mae'r dyn yn ifancThe man is young
    Y dyn sydd yn ifancThe man who is young"
    not *Y dyn a yw'n ifanc
  2. a is not used in indirect relative clauses, where the pronoun is part of a genitive or periphrastic construction. Instead the second relative pronoun y is used
    Roedd chwaer y dyn ymaThe man's sister was here
    Y dyn yr oedd ei chwaer ymaThe man whose sister was here
    not *Y dyn a oedd ei chwaer yma
    Byddaf yn talu'r dynI will pay the man
    Y dyn y byddaf yn ei daluThe man whose sister was here
    not *Y dyn a fyddaf yn ei dalu

West Makian[edit]

Etymology 1[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Verb[edit]

a

  1. (stative) to be cooked
  2. (stative) to be done, finished
Conjugation[edit]
Conjugation of a (stative verb)
singular plural
inclusive exclusive
1st person tia mia aa
2nd person nia fia
3rd person inanimate ia dia
animate maa
imperative —, a —, a

Etymology 2[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Verb[edit]

a

  1. (transitive) Alternative form of am (to eat)
Usage notes[edit]

The verb a ("to eat") takes the same verbal prefixes that directional verbs do.

Conjugation[edit]
Conjugation of a (directional verb)
singular plural
inclusive exclusive
1st person tia mia aa
2nd person nia fia
3rd person inanimate ia dia
animate
imperative nia, a fia, a

References[edit]

  • Clemens Voorhoeve (1982) The Makian languages and their neighbours[35], Pacific linguistics

Yola[edit]

Etymology 1[edit]

From Middle English þe, from Old English þe.

Alternative forms[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

  • IPA(key): /iː/, /ðiː/, /ð/, /jiː/, /j/

Article[edit]

a

  1. the, in later times the.
    • 1867, “THE WEDDEEN O BALLYMORE”, in SONGS, ETC. IN THE DIALECT OF FORTH AND BARGY, number 3, page 94:
      Maade a nicest coolecannan that e'er ye did zee.
      Made the nicest coolecannan that ever you did see.
    • 1867, “JAMEEN QOUGEELY EE-PEALTHE”, in SONGS, ETC. IN THE DIALECT OF FORTH AND BARGY, page 110, lines 5-6:
      If ich hadh Peeougheen a Buch, Meyleare a Slut, Peedher Ghiel-laaune, an Jackeen Bugaaune,
      If I had Hugh the Buck, Meyler the Sloven, Peter the Smart Man, and John Boggan,

Etymology 2[edit]

From Middle English a, an, from Old English ān (one; a; lone; sole).

Alternative forms[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Article[edit]

a

  1. one
    • 1867, GLOSSARY OF THE DIALECT OF FORTH AND BARGY, page 30:
      A chi of barach.
      A little barley.

Etymology 3[edit]

Unstressed form of an.

Pronunciation[edit]

Preposition[edit]

a

  1. on
    • 1867, GLOSSARY OF THE DIALECT OF FORTH AND BARGY, page 35:
      Aar's dhurth a heighe.
      There's dirt on high.
    • 1867, CONGRATULATORY ADDRESS IN THE DIALECT OF FORTH AND BARGY, page 116, lines 4-6:
      Yer name var zetch avancet avare ye, e'en a dicke var hye, arent whilke ye brine o'zea an ye craggès o'noghanes cazed nae balke.
      Your fame for such came before you even into this retired spot, to which neither the waters of the sea below nor the mountains above caused any impediment.

Etymology 4[edit]

Pronoun[edit]

a

  1. Alternative form of thaaye (they)
    • 1867, GLOSSARY OF THE DIALECT OF FORTH AND BARGY, page 32:
      A war cowdealeen wi ooree.
      They were scolding with one another.

Etymology 5[edit]

Preposition[edit]

a

  1. Alternative form of o' (of)
    • 2005, Folk Songs:
      Nich th' hia thoras a Culpake.
      Nigh the tall thistles of Culpake.

References[edit]

Yoruba[edit]

Etymology 1[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Letter[edit]

a (lower case, upper case A)

  1. The first letter of the Yoruba alphabet, called á and written in the Latin script.

Noun[edit]

á

  1. The name of the Latin-script letter A.

See also[edit]

Etymology 2[edit]

Likely a clipping of àwa (we (emphatic pronoun))

Pronunciation[edit]

Pronoun[edit]

a

  1. we (first-person plural personal subject pronoun)
    Ó yẹ kí a dọ̀bálẹ̀ fún áwọn àgbàlagbà tí a máa ń pàdé.
    It's necessary that we prostrate for elders that we meet.
    A à tí ì rí wọn lónìí, ṣùgbọ́n a máa lọ sí báńkì lọ́la láti bá wọn sọ̀rọ̀.
    We haven't seen them yet today, but we'll go to the bank tomorrow to talk to them.
Usage notes[edit]

Similar to other shortened subject pronouns, its usage is restricted and can only be found directly before a verb or pre-verbal marker. It cannot be used with particles/discourse markers such as ńkọ́ or conjunctions such as àti, pẹ̀lú, and tàbí. In those cases, àwa must be used instead.

Etymology 3[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Pronoun[edit]

a

  1. him, her, it (third-person singular non-honorific object pronoun following a monosyllabic verb with a high-tone /a/)
    Synonym: (honorific) wọn
    Àá bá a sọ̀rọ̀ l'ọ́sẹ̀ t'ó ń bọ̀.
    We'll talk to him next week.

Pronoun[edit]

á

  1. him, her, it (third-person singular non-honorific object pronoun following a monosyllabic verb with a low- or mid-tone /a/)
    Synonym: (honorific) wọn
    Wọ́n ti pa á o!They've killed her!
    Ǹj'ó o kà á?Did you read it?

See also[edit]

See Template:yo-personal pronouns.

Yucatec Maya[edit]

Pronoun[edit]

a

  1. you (second-person singular pronoun)

Zazaki[edit]

Letter[edit]

a

  1. The first letter of the Zazaki alphabet, written in the Latin script.

See also[edit]

Pronoun[edit]

a f

  1. she

Zhuang[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Etymology 1[edit]

Compare Chinese ().

Noun[edit]

a (Sawndip forms 𮬨 or or ⿰下鳥 or )

  1. crow
Synonyms[edit]

Etymology 2[edit]

Noun[edit]

a (Sawndip form )

  1. (dialectal) mother

Etymology 3[edit]

Particle[edit]

a

  1. used to express questions

Zou[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Noun[edit]

a

  1. hen

References[edit]

  • Lukram Himmat Singh (2013) A Descriptive Grammar of Zou, Canchipur: Manipur University, page 41

Zulu[edit]

Letter[edit]

a (lower case, upper case A)

  1. The first letter of the Zulu alphabet, written in the Latin script.

See also[edit]