a

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The Universal Character Set
Letter a.svg
Unicode name LATIN SMALL LETTER A
Basic Latin U+0061
See also A, Appendix:Variations of "a", and 𐌳

Contents

[edit] Translingual

Wikisource
See also the 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica's article on:
A.

[edit] Etymology 1

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

[edit] Pronunciation

  • (most languages): IPA: /ɑː/, /a/

[edit] Letter

a lower case (upper case A)

  1. The first letter of the basic modern Latin alphabet.

[edit] See also

[edit] External links

[edit] Etymology 2

  • (10^18): From atto-, from Danish and Norwegian atten (“‘eighteen’”).
  • (year): From Latin annus

[edit] Symbol

a

  1. atto-, the prefix for 10-18 by the International System of Units.
  2. A year in SI Units, specifically a Julian year or exactly 365.25 days.
  3. Used in the International Phonetic Alphabet and in several romanization systems of non-Latin scripts to represent an open central unrounded vowel (IPA: /a/)

[edit] See also

Other representations of A:

Letter styles

Capital and lowercase versions of A, in normal and italic type

Uppercase and lowercase A in Fraktur

Approximate form of Greek upper case Α (a, “alpha”) that was the source for both common variants of aA in uncial script

[edit] English

Most common English words: little « now « then « #79: a » should » can » made

[edit] Etymology 1

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

[edit] Alternative forms

[edit] Pronunciation

  • (letter name)
    The current pronunciation is a comparatively modern sound, and has taken the place of what, till about the early part of the 17th century, was similar to that in other languages.
  • (phoneme) IPA: /æ/, /ɑː/, /eɪ/, ...

[edit] Letter

a (lower case, upper case A)

  1. The first letter of the English alphabet.
[edit] Usage notes

In English, the letter a by usually denotes the near-open front unrounded vowel (IPA: /æ/), as in pad, the open back unrounded vowel (IPA: /ɑː/) as in father, or, followed by another vowel, the diphthong IPA: /eɪ/, as in ace.

a is the third-most common letter in English.

[edit] Derived terms
[edit] See also
  • Next letter: b

[edit] Noun

Singular
a

Plural
aes

a (plural aes)

  1. The name of the letter A.
  2. (often capitalized) The best grade; superiority.
    The burgers here are grade a number 1.
[edit] Translations
name of the letter A, a

[edit] Etymology 2

Old English ān.

[edit] Pronunciation

[edit] Article

a (indefinite)

  1. Apocopic form of an. One; any indefinite example of.
    There was a man here looking for you yesterday.
    I've seen it happen a hundred times.
  2. One certain or particular.
    We've received an interesting letter from a Mrs. Miggins of London.
[edit] Usage notes
Main appendix: English articles#Indefinite articles
  • The article an is used before vowel sounds, and a before consonant sounds.

[edit] Quotations

  • 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!

[edit] Translations

See an for translations.

[edit] Etymology 3

Unstressed form of on.

[edit] Pronunciation

[edit] Preposition

a

  1. (archaic) In, on, at, by.
    A God’s name.
    Torn a pieces.
    Stand a tiptoe.
    • Shakespeare, Hamlet, IV-v: A Sundays
    • Chaucer: Wit that men have now a days.
  2. (archaic) In the process of; in the act of; into; to. (Used with verbal substantives in -ing which begin with a consonant.)
    • King James Bible, Hebrews 11-21: Jacob, when he was a dying
    • Shakespeare: It was a doing.
    • Bob Dylan: The times, they are a changin'.
  3. (archaic) Of.
    The name of John a Gaunt.
    • Shakespeare, 1 Henry IV, I-ii: What time a day is it?
    • Ben Jonson: It’s six a clock.
  4. To, each, per.
    I brush my teeth twice a day.
    The servants are given a bonus of six shillings a man.

[edit] Etymology 4

Unstressed variant of have or of.

[edit] Pronunciation

[edit] Verb

Infinitive
a

Third person singular
-

Simple past
-

Past participle
-

Present participle
-

a (third-person singular simple present -, present participle -, simple past and past participle -)

  1. (archaic or slang) Have. (Now often attached to preceding auxiliary verb.)
    I shoulda stayed at home last night.
[edit] Derived terms
Derived terms

[edit] Etymology 5

Unstressed variant of ha (“‘he’”), heo (“‘she’”), etc.

[edit] Pronunciation

[edit] Pronoun

a

  1. He; she; it; they.
    • (obsolete) Shakespeare, Much Ado About Nothing, III-ii:
      a’ brushes his hat o’ mornings.
    • (British, Scottish, dialectical) 1874 Thomas Hardy, Far from the Madding Crowd, Barnes & Noble Classics reprint [reset], 2005, ch 5 p 117; from "Hardy's 1912 Wessex edition":
      "And how Farmer James would cuss, and call thee a fool, wouldn't he, Joseph, when 'a seed his name looking so inside-out-like?" continued Matthew Moon, with feeling. / "Ay -- 'a would," said Joseph meekly.

[edit] Etymology 6

Variant spelling of ah.

[edit] Pronunciation

  • IPA: /ə/, /ɑ:/

[edit] Interjection

a

  1. A meaningless syllable; ah.
    • Shakespeare, The Winter’s Tale, IV-iii:
      A merry heart goes all the day
      Your sad tires in a mile-a
    • Avery, I Love to Singa:
      I love to sing-a
      About the moon-a and the June-a and the Spring-a.

[edit] Etymology 7

Abbreviations.

[edit] Pronunciation

[edit] Abbreviation

a

  1. (on bills, etc.) accepted
  2. ante; before.
  3. (linguistics) active
  4. adjective
  5. An are, a unit of area of which 100 comprise a hectare.

[edit] See also

[edit] External links

[edit] Afar

[edit] Determiner

a

  1. this

[edit] Ainu

[edit] Pronoun

a- (verb prefix, kana ア-)

  1. I, we, someone, my

[edit] Aragonese

[edit] Etymology

From Latin illa.

[edit] Article

a f. sg.

  1. the
    A luenga aragonesa — “The Aragonese language”

[edit] Asturian

[edit] Preposition

a

  1. to, towards

[edit] Derived terms

[edit] Bosnian

[edit] Conjunction

a

  1. and
  2. but

[edit] Catalan

[edit] Etymology 1

[edit] Noun

a f. (plural as)

  1. The Latin letter A (lowercase a).
[edit] Derived terms

[edit] Etymology 2

[edit] Preposition

a

  1. in, at; indicating a particular time or place
  2. per

[edit] Usage notes

When the preposition a is followed by a masculine definite article, el (sg.) or els (pl.), it is contracted with it to the forms al (sg.) or als (pl.) respectively. If el would be elided to the form l’ becuse 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 salty article es inv., to form as except where es would be elided to s’

[edit] Derived terms

[edit] Croatian

[edit] Conjunction

a

  1. and
  2. but

[edit] Czech

[edit] Pronunciation

[edit] Conjunction

a

  1. and

[edit] Danish

[edit] Alternative forms

  • à (unofficial but common)

[edit] Preposition

a

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

[edit] Verb

a

  1. Imperative of ae.

[edit] Dutch

[edit] Pronunciation

[edit] Letter

a (lower case, upper case A)

  1. The first letter of the Dutch alphabet.

[edit] Usage notes

In certain Dutch dialects the IPA: /a/ is pronounced more as IPA: /ɔ/, making words like twaalf rhyme with wolf. In written form, twaalf would be twoalf.

[edit] See also

  • Next letter: b

[edit] Egyptian

[edit] Pronunciation

[edit] Noun

D36
Z1

D36:Z1 a

  1. arm

[edit] Esperanto

[edit] Pronunciation

  • (letter name): IPA: /a/
  • (phoneme): IPA: /a/

[edit] Letter

a (lower case, upper case A)

  1. The first letter of the Esperanto alphabet.

[edit] See also

  • Next letter: b

[edit] Noun

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

  1. The name of the letter A/a.

[edit] Filipino

[edit] Interjection

a

  1. ah! (an exclamation of pity, admiration or surprise)
    A! Kailan namatay ang iyong ina? — "Ah! When did your mother die?"

[edit] Letter

a

  1. the first letter of the Filipino alphabet

[edit] French

[edit] Letter

a m. (lower case, upper case A)

  1. The 1st letter of the French alphabet, preceding b.

[edit] Pronoun

a (plural elles)

  1. (Quebec, informal) Alternative form of elle.

[edit] Symbol

a

  1. are (100 square metres)

[edit] Verb

a

  1. Third-person singular indicative present of avoir.

[edit] See also

[edit] Galician

[edit] Etymology 1

From Latin ad (“‘to, toward’”).

[edit] Preposition

a

  1. to, toward
[edit] Usage notes

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.

[edit] Derived terms

[edit] Etymology 2

From Latin illa, feminine of ille (“‘that’”).

[edit] Article

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

  1. (definite) the
[edit] Usage notes

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.

[edit] Derived terms

[edit] Pronoun

a f accusative (nominative ela, oblique ela, dative lle)

  1. her (feminine singular third-person personal pronoun)
[edit] Usage notes

The third-person direct object pronouns o, os, a, and as, have variant forms prefixed with l- or n-. These alternative forms appear depending on the ending of the preceding word. The l- forms (e.g. la) are used when the preceding word ends in -r or -s. The n- forms (e.g. na) are used when the preceding word ends in a -u or a diphthong. These alternative forms are then suffixed to the preceding word.

In all other situations, the standard forms of the pronouns are used (o, os, a, as) and are not suffixed to the preceding word.

These direct object pronouns also form contractions when they immediately follow an indirect object pronoun. For example, Dou che a ("I gave you it.") contracts to Dou cha.

[edit] Derived terms
[edit] Related terms
[edit] See also

[edit] Haitian Creole

[edit] Article

a

  1. the (definite article)

[edit] Usage notes

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.

[edit] See also

[edit] Hungarian

[edit] Article

a (definite)

  1. the
    a hölgy - the lady

[edit] Usage notes

Used before words starting with a consonant.

[edit] Related terms

  • az, for words starting with a vowel

[edit] Ido

[edit] Alternative forms

  • (before a vowel) ad

[edit] Preposition

a

  1. to

[edit] Interlingua

[edit] Preposition

a

  1. to, at

[edit] Derived terms

[edit] Irish

[edit] Pronunciation

[edit] Particle

a

  1. Vocative (triggers lenition)
    A Dhia! — "O God!"
    A dhuine uasail — "Sir"
    Tar isteach, a Sheáin — "Come in, Seán"
    A amadáin! — "You fool!"
  2. Numeral (attaches h to a vowel)
    A haon, a dó, a trí... — "One, two, three..."
    Séamas a Dó — "James the Second"
    Bus a seacht — "The number seven bus"
  3. Direct relative (triggers lenition)
    An fear a chuireann síol — "The man who sows seed"
    An síol a chuireann an fear — "The seed that the man sows"
    Nuair a éirím — "When I rise"
  4. Indirect relative (triggers eclipsis)
    An bord a bhfuil leabhar air — "The table on which there is a book"
    An fear a bhfuil a mac ag imeacht — "The man whose son is going away"
  5. how, used with an abstract noun (triggers lenition)
    A ghéire a labhair sí — "How sharply she spoke"
    A fheabhas atá sé — "How good it is"

[edit] Preposition

a

  1. to, used with a verbal noun (triggers lenition)
    Síol a chur — "To sow seed"
    Uisce a ól — "To drink water"
    An rud atá sé a scríobh — "What he is writing"
    D’éirigh sé a chaint — "He rose to speak"
    Téigh a chodladh — "Go to sleep"

[edit] Pronoun

a

  1. his, its (triggers lenition)
    A athair agus a mháthair — "His father and mother"
    Chaill an t-éan a chleití — "The bird lost its feathers"
  2. her, its (attaches h to a vowel)
    A hathair agus a máthair — "Her father and mother"
    Bhris an mheaig a heiteog — "The magpie broke its wing"
  3. their (triggers eclipsis)
    a dtithe — "their houses"
    a n-ainmneacha — "their names"
  4. 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"

[edit] Italian

[edit] Pronunciation

[edit] Etymology 1

From Latin ad. In a few phrases, a stems from Latin a, ab.[1]

[edit] Preposition

a

  1. in
  2. at
  3. to
  4. Indicates the direct object, mainly to avoid confusion when it, the subject, or both are displaced, or for emphasis
    A me non importa. — “It doesn’t matter to me.” (literally, "To me it doesn’t matter.")
    A lei non piace, ma a lui piace molto — “She doesn't like it, but he likes it very much.”
[edit] Usage notes

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

[edit] Etymology 2

[edit] Verb

a

  1. Common misspelling of ha.

[edit] References

  • Notes:
  1. ^ Angelo Prati, "Vocabolario Etimologico Italiano", Torino, 1951

[edit] Japanese

[edit] Noun

a (hiragana あ)

  1. あ: hiragana letter a
  2. ア: katakana letter a

[edit] Krisa

[edit] Noun

a m.

  1. pig

[edit] Latin

[edit] Letter

a (lower case, upper case A)

  1. (sometimes with littera) the first letter of the Latin alphabet.
    littera a — “the letter a”

[edit] Usage notes

Broom icon.svg A user suggests that this entry should be cleaned up, giving the reason: “Information about mutations of the letter and sound a belongs in an appendix, if anywhere.”.
Please see the discussion on Requests for cleanup(+) or the talk page for more information and remove this template after the problem has been dealt with.
    Mutations of the letter and sound a in the Latin language

The sound of the A is short or long in every part of the word; as, ăb, păter, ită; â, mâter, frustrâ. During a short period (between about 620 and 670 A.U.C. = from 134 to 84 B.C.) long a was written aa, probably first by the poet Lucius Attius, in the manner of the Oscan language; so we find in Latin inscriptions: AA. CETEREIS (i.e., a ceteris), CALAASI, FAATO, HAACE, MAARCIVM, PAAPVS, PAASTORES, VAARVS; and in Greek writing, ΜAAPKOY YIOΣ MAAPKEΛΛOΣ, KOINTON MAAPKION (like Oscan aasas = Latin âra, Oscan Paapi = Latin Pâpius, Oscan Paakul = Latin Pâculus, Pâcullus, Pâcuvius, etc.), vide Friedrich Wilhelm Ritschl's Priscae Latinitatis Monumenta Epigraphica, page 28 sequens, and compare Theodor Mommsen, Die Unteritalischen Dialekte, page 210 sequens. (The Umbrian language has gone a step farther, and written long a by aha, as Aharna, Naharcom, trahaf, etc.; compare Aufrecht and Kirchoff, Umbrische Sprachdenkm. page 76 sequens) See also the letter E and U.

III. In etymological and grammatical formation of words, short a very often (sometimes also long a) is changed into other vowels.
A. Short a is changed, 1, into long a—
a. In consequence of the suppression of the following consonants at the end or in the middle of the word: ăb, â; vădis, vâs; ăg-ăg-men, exâmen; tăg-, contâmino; căd-, câsus. Hence also in the ablative singular of the first declension, and in the particles derived from it, in consequence of the suppression of the original ablative ending. -d: PRAEDAD (Col. Rostr.), praedâ; SENTENTIAD (S. C. de Bacch.), sententiâ: EXTRAD (ibidem), extrâ; SVPRAD (ibidem), suprâ.—Hence
b. In perfect forms: scăb-o, scâbi; căv-eo, câvi; făv-eo, fâvi; păv-eo, pâvi (for scâbui, căvui, făvui, păvui).
c. In other forms: ăgo, ambâges; păc-, păc-iscor, pâcis (pâx); săg-ax, sâgus, sâga; măc-er, mâcero; făg- (φαγειν), fâgus. (Contrary to analogy, ă remains short in dănunt, from dă-in-unt, see Friedrich Wilhelm Ritschl, Priscae Latinitatis Monumenta Epigraphica, l. 1. page 17.)
2. Short a is changed into ĕ or ê—
a. Into ĕ. (α) Most frequently in the second part of compounds, particularly before two consonants: facio, confectus; jacio, conjectus; rapio, dereptus; dăm-, damno, condemno; făl-, fallo, fefelli; măn-, mando, commendo; scando, ascendo; ăp-, aptus, ineptus; ăr-, ars, iners, sollers; ăn-, annus, perennis; căpio, auceps; căput, triceps; ăgo, remex; jăcio, objex. And thus in Plautus, according to the best manuscripts, dispenno, dispessus from pando, compectus from compăciscor, anteceptus from capio (on the other hand, in Vergil, according to the manuscript, aspargo, attractare, detractare, kept their a unchanged).
(β) Sometimes ă is changed into ĕ also before one consonant (but in this case it is usually changed into ĭ; vide infra 3.a.α.): grădior, ingrĕdior; pătior, perpĕtior; părio, repĕrio; păro, vitupĕro; ăp-, coepi (i.e., co-ĕpi); căno, tubicĕn, tibicĕn; in the reduplicated carcĕr (from carcar) farfĕrus (written also farfărus); and so, according to the better manuscripts, aequipĕro from păro, and defĕtigo from fătigo.
(γ) In words taken from the Greek: τάλαντον, talĕntum; φάλαρα, phalĕrae; σίσαρον, sisĕr (but according to the best manuscripts, camăra from καμάρα, not camăra).
b. Short a is changed to ĕ in some perfect forms: ăgo, ĕgi; făcio, fĕci; jăcio, jĕci; frag-, frango, frĕgi; căpio, cĕpi, and păg-, pango, pĕgi (together with pepĭgi and panxi, vide pango).
3. Short a is changed to ĭ—
a. (most frequently in the second part of compounds) (α) before one consonant: ăgo, abĭgo; făcio, confĭcio; cădo, concĭdo; sălio, assĭlio; răpio, abrĭpio; păter, Juppĭter (in Umbrian language unchanged, Jupater), Marspĭter; Diespĭter, Opĭter; rătus, irrĭtus; ămicus, inĭmicus (but ă remains unchanged in adămo, impătiens, and in some compounds of a later period of Roman literature, as praejacio, calefacio, etc.).—(β) Sometimes also before two consonants (where it is usually changed into ĕ; vide supra, 2.α.β.): tăg-, tango, contingo; păg-, pango, compingo (unchanged in some compounds, as peragro, desacro, depango, obcanto, etc.).
b. ă is changed into ĭ in the reduplicated perfect forms: cădo, cecĭdi; căno, cecĭni; tăg-, tango, tetĭgi; păg-, pango, pepĭgi.
c. Likewise in some roots which have ă: păg, pignus; străg- (strangulo, στράγγω), stringo.
d. In words taken from the Greek: μηχανή, machĭna; πατάνη, patĭna; βυκάνη, bucĭna; τρυτάνη, trutĭna; βαλανειον, balĭneum; Κατάνα, Catĭna; (written also as Catana); Άκράγας, Agrĭgentum.
4. Short a is changed into short or long o.
a. Into ŏ: scăbo, scobs; păr, pars, portio; dăm-, dŏmo; Fabii, Fŏvii (vide Paulus Diaconus' epitome of Sextus Pompeius Festus' De significatu verborum, page 87); μάρμαρον, marmŏr; Mars, redupl. Marmar, Marmor (Carm. Fratr. Arv.).
b. Into ô: dă-, dônum, dôs; ăc-, ăcuo, ôcior (vide this article).
5. Short a is changed into ŭ—
a. In the second part of compounds, particularly before l, p and b: calco, inculco; salsus, insulsus; salto, exsulto; capio, occŭpo; răpio, surrupio and surruptus (also written surripio and surreptus); tăberna, contŭbernium;—before other consonants: quătio, concŭtio; as, decussis; Mars, Mamŭrius, Mamŭralia; and once also condumnari (Tab. Bant. lin. 8, immediately followed by condemnatus, vide Leo von Klenze, Philologische Abhandlungen tabula I., and Theodor Mommsen's, Die Unteritalischen Dialekte, page 149).
b. In words of Greek origin: `Εκάβη, Hecŭba; σκυτάλη, scutŭla; κραιπάλη, crapŭla; πάσσαλος, pessŭlus; `άφλαστον, aplustre; θρίαμβος, triumphus.
c. ă is perhaps changed into ŭ in ulciscor, compared with alc-, `αλέξω (arc-, arceo).
B. Long a is sometimes changed into ê or ô.
1. Into ê: hâlo, anhêlo; fâs-, fêstus, profêstus; nâm, nêmpe.
2. Into ô: gnâ-, gnârus, ignârus, ignôro. (But in general long a remains unchanged in composition: lâbor, delâbor; gnâbus, ignâvus; fâma, infâmis.)
IV. Contrary to the mode of changing Greek α into Latin e, i, o, u (vide supra), Latin a has sometimes taken the place of other Greek vowels in words borrowed from the Greek, as: λόγχη, lancea; κύλιξ, călix; Γανυμήδης, Catămītus.
V. The repugnance of the Latin language to the Greek combined vowels αο has caused the translocation of them in Alumento for Λαομέδων (Paul. ex Fest. p. 18 Müll.).—Greek α is suppressed in Hercules from `Ηρακλης (probably in consequence of the inserted u; in late Latin we find Heracla and Heracula, cf. Ritschl, in Rhein. Mus. Neue Folge, vol. 12, p. 108).
VI. Latin ă was early combined with the vowels i and u, forming the diphthongs ai and au; by changing the i into e, the diphthong ai soon became ae. So we find in the oldest inscriptions: AIDE, AIDILIS, AIQVOM, GNAIVOD, HAICE, DVELONAI, TABELAI, DATAI, etc., which soon gave place to aedem, aedilis, aequom, Gnaeo, haec, Bellonae, tabellae, datae, etc. (the Col. Rostr. has PRAESENTE, PRAEDAD, and the S. C. de Bacch. AEDEM. The triphthong aei, found in CONQVAEISIVEI(?), is very rare; Miliar. Popil. lin. 11, v. Ritschl, l. 1. p. 21). In some poets the old genetive singular of the first declension (-ai) is preserved, but is dissyllabic, âî. So in Ennius: Albâî Longâî, terrâî frugiferâî, frondosâî, lunâî, viâî; in Vergil: aulâî, aurâî, aquâî, pictâî; in Ausonius: herâî.
B. ae as well as au are changed into other vowels.
1. The sound of ae, e, and oe being very similar, these vowels are often interchanged in the best manuscripts. So we find caerimonia and cerimonia, caepa and cêpa, saeculum and sêculum; scaena and scêna; caelum and coelum, haedus and hoedus, maestus and moestus; cena, coena, and caena, etc.
2. In composition and reduplications ae becomes î: aequus, inîquus; quaero, inquîro; laedo, illîdo; taedet, pertîsum (noticed by Cicero); aestumo, exîstumo; caedo, cecîdi, concîdo, homicîda.
3. ae is also changed into î in a Latinized word of Greek origin: `Αχαιός (`ΑχαιFός), Achîvus.
4. The diphthong au is often changed to ô and û (the latter particularly in compounds): caudex, côdex; Claudius, Clodius; lautus, lôtus; plaustrum, plôstrum; plaudo, plôdo, explôdo; paululum, pôlulum; faux, suffôco; si audes (according to Cicero or according to others, si audies), sôdes, etc.; claudo, inclûdo; causa, accûso. Hence in some words a regular gradation of au, o, u is found: claudo, clôdicare, clûdo; raudus, rôdus, rûdus; caupo, côpa, cûpa; naugae, nôgae (both forms in the manuscripts of Plautus), nûgae; fraustra, frode, frude (in manuscripts of Vergil); cf. Ritschl, in Wintercatalog 1854-55, and O. Ribbeck, in Jahn's Neue Jahrb. vol. 77, p. 181 sq.—The change of au into oe and e appears only in audio, (oboedio) obêdio.
5. Au sometimes takes the place of av-: faveo, fautum, favitor, fautor; navis, navita, nauta; avis, auceps, auspex. So Latin aut corresponds to Sanscrit ave (whence -vâ, Latin -ve), Osc. avti, Umbr. ute, ote; and so the Latin preposition ab, through av, becomes au in the words aufero and aufugio (prop. av-fero, av-fugio, for ab-fero, ab-fugio). Vide the article ab init.
VII. In primitive roots, which have their kindred forms in the sister-languages of the Latin, the original a, still found in the Sanscrit, is in Latin either preserved or more frequently changed into other vowels.
A. Original a preserved: Sanscrit mâtri, Latin mâter; Sanscrit bhrâtri, Latin frâter; Sanscrit nâsâ, Latin nâsus and nâris; Sanscrit ap, Latin aqua; Sanscrit apa, Latin ab; Sanscrit nâma, Latin năm; Sanscrit catur, Latin, quattuor (in Greek changed: τέτταρες); Sanscrit capûla, Latin căput (in Greek changed: κεφαλή, etc.).
B. Original a is changed into other Latin vowels—
1. Into e: Sanscrit ad, Latin ed (ĕdo); Sanscrit as, Latin es (esse); Sanscrit pat, Latin pet (peto); Sanscrit pâd, Latin pĕd (pês); Sanscrit dant, Latin dent (dens); Sanscrit gan, Latin gen (gigno); Sanscrit mâ, Latin mê-tior; Sanscrit saptan, Latin septem; Sanscrit daśan, Latin decem; Sanscrit śata, Latin centum; Sanscrit aham, Latin ĕgo; Sanscrit pâra, Latin per; Sanscrit paśu, Latin pĕcus; Sanscrit asva, Latin ĕquus, etc.
2. Into i: Sanscrit an-, a- (neg. part.), Latin in-; Sanscrit ana (prep.), Latin in; Sanscrit antar, Latin inter; Sanscrit abhara, Latin imber; Sanscrit panca, Latin quinque, etc.
3. Into o: Sanscrit avi, Latin ŏvi (ovis); Sanscrit vac, Latin vŏc (voco); Sanscrit pra, Latin pro; Sanscrit pâ, Latin po (pôtum); Sanscrit nâma, Latin nômen; Sanscrit api, Latin ŏb; Sanscrit navan, Latin nŏvem; Sanscrit nava, Latin nŏvus, etc.
4. Into u: Sanscrit marmara, Latin murmur.
5. Into ai, ae: Sanscrit prati, Latin (prai) prae; Sanscrit śaśpa, Latin caespes.
6. Into different vowels in the different derivatives: Sanscrit mâ, Latin mê-tior, mŏdus; Sanscrit prac, Latin prĕcor, prŏcus; Sanscrit vah, Latin vĕho, via.
C. Sometimes the Latin has preserved the original a, while even the Sanscrit has changed it: Latin pa-, pater, Sanscrit. pâ, pitri.
REFERENCE: Lewis and Short’s Latin Dictionary, Oxford, 1879.

[edit] Preposition

a (takes object in ablative case)

  1. of; from

[edit] Synonyms

[edit] Derived terms

[edit] Interjection

ā!

  1. ah

[edit] Lingua Franca Nova

[edit] Preposition

a

  1. to, at, in, on, toward, towards, in the manner of

[edit] Interjection

a

  1. ah

[edit] Noun

a

  1. “the letter a”

[edit] Mandarin

[edit] Particle

a (Pinyin a, traditional and simplified 啊)

Modal particle (used as phrase suffix)

  1. (in enumeration)
    qian a, shu a, biao a, wo dou diu le. Money, books, watch, I lost everything.
  2. (in direct address and exclamation)
    Lao Wang a, zhe ke bùxíng a! Old Wang, this won't do!
  3. (indicating obviousness/impatience)
    lai a! Come on!
  4. (for confirmation)
    ni bu lai a? So, you're not coming?

[edit] Pronunciation

[edit] Interjection

a (Pinyin ā or a, traditional and simplified 啊)

  1. (Beginning Mandarin) ah; oh

[edit] Usage notes

  • placed at the end of a sentence, or used by itself to express surprise.

[edit] Pinyin

a (form of a0 or a5)

  1. 啊: exclamatory particle
  2. 阾:

[edit] Pinyin syllable

a

  1. A transliteration of any of a number of Chinese characters properly represented as having one of four tones, ā, á, ǎ, or à.

[edit] Usage notes

English transcriptions of Chinese speech often fail to distinguish between the critical tonal differences employed in the Chinese language, using words such as this one without the appropriate indication of tone.


[edit] References

  • Shao, Jingmin (ed.) (2000). HSK Dictionary (HSK汉语水平考试词典) (in Mandarin/English). Shanghai: Huadong Teachers College Publishers. ISBN 7561720785.

[edit] Min Nan

simpl. and trad.
啊

[edit] Pronunciation

[edit] Interjection

a (POJ, traditional and simplified 啊)

  1. ah; oh

[edit] Usage notes

  • placed at the end of a sentence, or used by itself to express surprise.

[edit] Novial

[edit] Preposition

a

  1. to

[edit] Usage notes

When followed by the definite article, li, a may optionally be combined with the article to give al.

[edit] Old English

[edit] Etymology

Germanic *aiwi-, from Proto-Indo-European *aiw- (“‘vitality’”). Cognate with Old Saxon eo, Old High German io, eo (German je), Old Norse ei, ey (English aye), Gothic 𐌰𐌹𐍅𐍃 (“‘age, eternity’”).

[edit] Pronunciation

[edit] Adverb

ā

  1. ever, always

[edit] Descendants

[edit] Polish

[edit] Pronunciation

[edit] Conjunction

a

  1. and; but
    A ty? - “And you?”
    Ty wolisz tabletki, a ja wolę zastrzyki. - “You prefer pills and I prefer injections.”

[edit] Portuguese

[edit] Pronunciation

  • Hyphenation: a

[edit] Etymology 1

From Latin illa

[edit] Article

a f. (singular, definite)

  1. the
    Lá vem a chuva. — “Here comes the rain.”

[edit] See also

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

[edit] Etymology 2

From Latin ad (“‘to’”)

[edit] Preposition

a

  1. to
    Vamos a Paris! — “Let’s go to Paris!”
    a você — “to you” (***)
    a onze milhas — “eleven miles away” (*.*)
    a vinte metros — “twenty meters away” (*.*)
    a mim — “to me” (***)
    a ti — “to you” (***)
    a ele — “to him” (***)
    a ela — “to her” (***)
    a nós — “to us” (***)
    a vós — “to you” (***)
    a eles — “to them” (***)
    a elas — “to them” (***)
    à distância — “at a distance” (*.*)
    a cavalo — “on horseback” (*.*)
    a convite de — “at the invitation of” (***)
    uma viagem a Paris — “a trip to Paris” (*.*)
    fazer uma visita a um lugar (ou pessoa) — “to pay a visit to some place (or person)” (***)
    Meu coração pertence a você. = “My heart belongs to you.”
  2. at
    Onde vai ele a esta hora da noite? — “Where is he going at this time of night?”
  3. Indicates the direct object, mainly to avoid confusion when it, the subject, or both are displaced.
    A mim ele não engana. — “He doesn’t deceive me.” (literally, “To me he doesn’t deceive.”)
[edit] Usage notes

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

[edit] Synonyms
[edit] See also

[edit] Pronoun

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.”

[edit] Usage notes

  • Becomes -la after verb forms ending in -r, -s, or -z, the pronouns nos and vos, and the adverb eis; the final letter causing the change disappears.
    After ver: Posso vê-la? — “May I see her/it?”
    After pôs: Quero pô-la ali. — “I want to put her/it there.”
    After fiz: Fi-la ficar contente. — “I made her/it happy.”
    After nos: Deu-no-la relutantemente. — “He gave her/it to us reluctantly.”
    After eis: Ei-la! — “Behold her/it!”
  • Becomes -na after a nasal diphthong: -ão, -am [ɐ̃w̃], -õe [õj], -em, -êm [ẽj].
    Detêm-na como prisioneira. — “They detain her/it as a prisoner.”
  • In Brazil it is being abandoned in favor of the nominative form ela.
    Eu a vi. → Eu vi ela. = “I saw her/it.”
[edit] See also
Portuguese personal pronouns (edit)
Number Person Subject
(nominative case)		 Direct object
(accusative case)		 Indirect object
(dative case)		 com +
indirect object
Singular First eu me mim comigo
Second tu te ti contigo
Third ele, ela lhe, o, a, se ele, ela, si consigo
Plural First nós nos nós conosco
Second vós vos vós convosco
Third eles, elas lhes, os, as, se eles, elas, si consigo

[edit] Etymology 3

From homophone há

[edit] Verb

a

  1. Common misspelling of há.

[edit] Etymology 4

From homophone à

[edit] Contraction

a

  1. Common misspelling of à.

[edit] Romanian

[edit] Pronunciation

[edit] Letter

a (lowercase, capital A)

  1. The first letter of the Romanian alphabet

[edit] Usage notes

In Romanian, the letter a represents the phoneme /a/.

[edit] See also

  • Next letter: ă

[edit] Article

a (feminine singular possessive article)

  1. of
    sora a lui Alexandru
    Alexandru's sister
    cartea a mea
    my book

[edit] See also

  • al (masculine/neuter singular)
  • ai (masculine plural)
  • ale (feminine/neuter plural)

[edit] Preposition

a

  1. (used with infinitive verbs) the infinitive marker to
    A fi.
    To be.

[edit] Verb

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

  1. (modal auxiliary)
    A văzut acest film?
    Has he/she seen this film?

[edit] Usage notes

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

[edit] Scots

[edit] Determiner

a

  1. Alternative spelling of aw.

[edit] Noun

a (uncountable)

Singular
a

Plural
uncountable
  1. Alternative spelling of aw.

[edit] Scottish Gaelic

[edit] Pronoun

a

  1. his
  2. her
  3. its
  4. who, which, that

[edit] Usage notes

  • As his/its lenites the following word.
    a mhac - his son
    a mac - her son
  • As his/its is omitted if the following word begins with a vowel or fh followed by a vowel.
    athair - a father or his father (depending on the context)

[edit] Preposition

a

  1. Alternative form of do.

[edit] Particle

a

  1. to (precedes the infinitive form)
    Tha mi a' dol a chadal. - I'm going to sleep.
  2. Used before cardinal numbers which are not followed by a noun.
    A bheil agad a ceithir? - Do you have four?
  3. Used before the vocative form.
    Hallo, a Ruairidh. - Hello, Roderick.

[edit] Serbian

[edit] Letter

a (lowercase, capital A)

  1. The first letter of the Serbian Latin alphabet, followed by b.

[edit] Usage notes

The Serbian name for а (a) is а (ā), and in stressed syllables it has the sound of the long a in father. In unstressed positions, it has the sound of the u in but.

[edit] Conjunction

a (Cyrillic spelling а)

  1. and
  2. but

[edit] Slovak

[edit] Conjunction

a

  1. and

[edit] Slovene

[edit] Pronunciation

[edit] Letter

a (lowercase, capital A)

  1. The first letter of the Slovene alphabet, followed by b.

[edit] Conjunction

a

  1. but

[edit] Spanish

[edit] Pronunciation

[edit] Etymology 1

[edit] Letter

a (lower case, upper case A)

  1. First letter of the Spanish alphabet.

[edit] Noun

a f. (plural as)

Singular
a f.

Plural
as f.
  1. Name of the letter A.

[edit] Etymology 2

Latin ad (“‘to’”)

[edit] Alternative spellings

  • (obsolete) á

[edit] Preposition

a

  1. to
  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.”
[edit] Usage notes
  • (before words referring to people or personified objects): Personal a is not translated in English.

[edit] See also

[edit] Sranan Tongo

[edit] Noun

a

  1. it

[edit] Tagalog

[edit] Interjection

a

  1. ah! (an exclamation of pity, admiration or surprise)
    A! Kailan namatay ang iyong ina? — "Ah! When did your mother die?"

[edit] Letter

a

  1. the first letter of the Tagalog alphabet

[edit] Welsh

[edit] Alternative forms

[edit] Pronunciation

  • (letter name): IPA: /aː/
  • (phoneme): IPA: /a/, /aː/

[edit] Letter

a (lower case, upper case A)

  1. â, the first letter of the Welsh alphabet

[edit] Derived terms

[edit] See also

  • Next letter: b

[edit] Yoruba

[edit] Pronoun

a

  1. First-person plural subject pronoun, we:
    a lo — “we went”
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