alpha

Definition from Wiktionary, a free dictionary

previous     letter		following     letter   beta
Α α   –   Greek: άλφα
Wikipedia article on alpha

Contents 1 English 1.1 Etymology 1.2 Pronunciation 1.3 Noun 1.4 Adjective 1.4.1 Derived terms 1.4.2 Translations 2 French 2.1 Pronunciation 3 Interlingua 4 Latin

[edit] English

[edit] Etymology

From Greek alpha (άλφα), the first letter of the Greek alphabet, from the Phoenician aleph.

[edit] Pronunciation

• IPA: /æɫfə/
•  Audio (US)^{help, file}

[edit] Noun

alpha (countable and uncountable; plural alphas)

1. The name of the first letter of the Greek alphabet (Α,  α), followed by beta. In the Latin alphabet it is the predecessor to A.
2. (sciences) The name of the symbols Α and α used in science and mathematics, often interchangeable with the symbols when used as a prefix.

   alpha particle ("α-particle")

3. The highest scientific caste of people in the novel Brave New World by Aldous Huxley.
4. In finance, the amount by which a given asset or portfolio's return exceeds a "riskless" rate of return.

[edit] Adjective

alpha

1. Designates the first in an order of precedence.

   alpha male

2. (astronomy) Designates the brightest star in a constellation.

   Alpha Centauri

[edit] Derived terms

alpha and omega alpha blogger Alpha Centauri, α-Centauri alpha emitter, α-emitter alpha female alpha geek

alpha helix, α-helix alpha male α-naphthol alpha particle, α-particle alpha ray, α-ray alpha wave alpha ray

alpha testing alpha version alphabet alphabet soup alphabetical alphabetical order alphanumeric

[edit] Translations

Croatian: alfa hr(hr) m. and f. Esperanto: alfa eo(eo) Finnish: alfa fi(fi) French: alpha fr(fr) m. Greek: άλφα el(el) n. Interlingua: alpha Italian: alfa it(it) m.

Latin: alpha la(la) Japanese: アルファ (arufa) Polish: alfa pl(pl) f. Portuguese: alfa pt(pt) m. Russian: альфа (ál'fa) f. Spanish: alfa es(es) Swedish: alfa sv(sv)

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[edit] French

[edit] Pronunciation

•  audio^{help, file}
• IPA: /al.fa/
• SAMPA: /al.fa/

alpha

• Alpha.

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[edit] Interlingua

alpha

1. Alpha.

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[edit] Latin

alpha

1. Alpha.