English Dictionary - With Multi-Lingual Search

see|A|Appendix:Variations of "a"
wikisource1911Enc|A
Translingual

Image:Latin A.png|thumb|The letter a

Etymology 1
Image:UncialA-01.svg|left|50px|Approximate form of Greek upper case � (a, �alpha�) that was the source for both common variants of a
Modification of capital letter term|A, from Gk. letter term|scGrek|�|tra||alpha.
<br clear="left" />

Pronunciation
sense|most languages IPA|/��/, IPAchar|/a/

Letter
infl|mul|letter|lower case||upper case|A

1. form of|lower case form|A The first lower case letter of the classical Latin alphabet and most variations thereof, including the English alphabet.

Usage notes
The letter term|a is used in the International Phonetic Alphabet and in several romanization systems of non-Latin scripts to represent an w:open central unrounded vowel|open central unrounded vowel (IPA|/a/).

See also
qualifier|select forms with diacritics à á â � ä å
qualifier|select forms with ligatures æ
qualifier|select symbols @ � �
qualifier|other scripts Cyrillic term|scCyrl|а|tra, Greek term|scGrek|α|tra||alpha, Hebrew term|scHebr|�|tra||aleph
For more variations, see Appendix:Variations of "a".
See Appendix:Roman script
pedialite

Etymology 2
sense|prefix for 10^-18 From term|atto-, from Danish and Norwegian term|atten||eighteen.
sense|year in SI units From L. term|annus

Symbol
infl|mul|symbol

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.

English

rank|of|and|to|5|a|in|that|I

Etymology 1
Image:Runic letter ansuz.png|left|30px|Runic letter term||�|tr=a|ansuz, source for Anglo-Saxon Futhorc letters replaced by a
From ME. and OE. lower case letter term|a|langenm and split of ME. and OE. lower case letter term|æ|langenm.
:* Image:Rune-Ac.png|10px|Anglo-Saxon Futhorc letter term||�|tra|�c OE. lower case letter term|a|langenm from 7th century replacement by Latin lower case letter term|a|langla of the Anglo-Saxon Futhorc letter term|scunicode|�||tra|�c, derived from Runic letter term|scunicode|�||tr=a|Ansuz.
:* Image:Rune-�sc.png|10px|Anglo-Saxon Futhorc letter term||�|træ|æsc OE. lower case letter term|æ|langenm from 7th century replacement by Latin lower case ligature term|æ|langla of the Anglo-Saxon Futhorc letter term|scunicode|�||træ|æsc, also derived from Runic letter term|scunicode|�||tr=a|Ansuz.

Alternative forms
qualifier|Gregg shorthand versions w:Gregg Shorthand#Centennial Gregg Shorthand|Centennial,w:Gregg Shorthand#Series 90 Gregg Shorthand|Series 90, w:Gregg Shorthand#Diamond Jubilee Gregg Shorthand|DJS, w:Gregg Shorthand#Simplified Gregg Shorthand|Simplified, w:Gregg Shorthand#Anniversary Gregg Shorthand|Anniversary, and w:Gregg Shorthand#Pre-Anniversary Gregg Shorthand|Pre-Anniversary onym|mul|·|gloss=dot

Pronunciation
qualifier|letter name

• a|RP|GenAm? IPA|/eɪ/, SAMPA|/eI/

*: audio|en-us-a.ogg|Audio (US)

• a|AusE? IPA|/æɪ/, SAMPA|/{I/
• rhymes|eɪ

qualifier|phoneme IPA|/æ/, IPAchar|/��/, IPAchar|/eɪ/, ...

Letter
infl|en|letter|lower case||upper case|A

1. The first letter of the English alphabet.

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

term|a is the third-most common letter in English.

See also
Next letter: b

Etymology 2
OE. term|an|�n|lang=ang.

Pronunciation
IPA|/�/, qualifier|stressed IPAchar|/eɪ/
audio|en-gb-a-stressed.ogg|Audio (RP), stressed
audio|en-us-a-stressed.ogg|Audio (US), stressed
audio|en-us-a-unstressed.ogg|Audio (US), unstressed

Article
infl|en|article|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.

1. One certain or particular.

#: We've received an interesting letter from a Mrs. Miggins of London.

Usage notes
Before a vowel sound, term|a becomes term|an.

Translations
See term|an for translations.

Etymology 3
Unstressed form of term|on.

Pronunciation
IPA|/�/

Preposition
infl|en|preposition

1. archaic In, on, at, by.

#: A God�s name.
#: Torn a pieces.
#: Stand a tiptoe.
#* Shakespeare, Hamlet, IV-v: A Sundays
#* w:Chaucer|Chaucer: Wit that men have now a days.

1. archaic In the process of; in the act of; into; to. italbrac|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.

1. 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.

1. To, each, per.

#: I brush my teeth twice a day.
#: The servants are given a bonus of six shillings a man.

Etymology 4
Unstressed variant of term|have or term|of.

Pronunciation
IPA|/�/

Verb
en-verb|inf=a|-|-|-|-

1. context|archaic|or|slang have|Have. italbrac|Now often attached to preceding auxiliary verb.

#: I shoulda stayed at home last night.
#*1860 printing, w:William Shakespeare|William Shakespeare, w:Hamlet|Hamlet, page 73
#*:So would I a done by yonder Å¿unne
#*:And thou hadſt not come to my bed.

Derived terms
rel-top|Derived terms
nowadays
coulda
rel-mid
sorta
shoulda
woulda
rel-bottom

Etymology 5
Unstressed variant of term|ha||he, term|heo||she, etc.

Pronunciation
IPA|/�/

Pronoun
infl|en|pronoun

1. obsolete he|He; she; it; they.

#* Shakespeare, Much Ado About Nothing, III-ii:
#*: a� brushes his hat o� mornings.

Etymology 6
Variant spelling of term|ah.

Pronunciation
IPA|/�/, /�:/

Interjection
en-interjection

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.

Etymology 7
Abbreviations.

Pronunciation
IPA|/eɪ/

abbreviation
infl|en|abbreviation

1. context|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.

See also
seeCites

Category:100 English basic words
Category:English articles
Category:English palindromes

Ainu

Pronoun
infl|ain|pronoun|head=a-|verb prefix||kana|�-

1. I, we, someone, my

Aragonese

Etymology
From Latin term|illa.

Article
a f s

1. the

#: A luenga aragonesa � �The Aragonese language�

Category:Aragonese articles

Bosnian

Conjunction
infl|bs|conjunction

1. and
2. but

Croatian

Conjunction
infl|hr|conjunction

1. and
2. but

Czech

Pronunciation
audio|Cs-a.ogg|audio

Conjunction
infl|cs|conjunction

1. and

Egyptian

Pronunciation
a see w:Manuel_de_Codage|Wikipedia: Manuel de Codage

Noun
<hiero>D36:Z1</hiero>
D36:Z1
infl|egy|noun

1. arm

French

Verb
infl|fr|third person singular present indicative form

1. form of||third-person singular indicative present|avoir

See also
à

Hungarian

Article
infl|hu|article|definite

1. the

Related terms
az

Interlingua

Preposition
infl|ia|preposition

1. to, at

Irish

Pronunciation
IPA|lang=ga|[�]

Particle
infl|ga|particle

1. Vocative (triggers lenition)

#: A Dhia! � "O God!"
#: A dhuine uasail � "Sir"
#: Tar isteach, a Sheáin � "Come in, Seán"
#: A amadáin! � "You fool!"

1. 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"

1. 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"

1. 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"

1. 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"

Preposition
infl|ga|preposition

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"

Pronoun
infl|ga|pronoun

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"

1. 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"

1. their (triggers eclipsis)

#: a dtithe � "their houses"
#: a n-ainmneacha � "their names"

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?"
#: �ocfaidh mé as a gceannóidh tú � "I will pay for whatever you buy"

Italian

Pronunciation
IPA|[a]

Preposition
infl|it|preposition

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.�

Usage notes
When followed by a definite article, a is combined with the article to give the following combined forms:
a + il#Italian|il: al#Italian|al
a + lo#Italian|lo: allo
a + l'#Italian|l: all
a + i#Italian|i: ai
a + gli: agli
a + la#Italian|la: alla
a + le#Italian|le: alle

Verb
a

1. misspelling of|lang=Italian|ha

Japanese

Noun
ja-noun|r|hira=�

1. �: hiragana letter a
2. �: katakana letter a

Krisa

Noun
a m

1. pig

Category:Krisa nouns
Category:ksi:Mammals

Latin

Letter
infl|la|letter|lower case||upper case|A

1. context|sometimes with littera the first letter of the Latin alphabet.

#: littera a � �the letter a�

Usage notes
rfc|Information about mutations of the letter and sound a belongs in an appendix, if anywhere.
<div class"NavFrame?" style"clear:both;">
<div class"NavHead?" align"left">&nbsp; &nbsp; Mutations of the letter and sound a in the Latin language</div>
<div class="NavContent?">
{| border"0" width"100%"
|-
| bgcolor"#FFFFE0" valign"top" width"48%" align"left" |
The sound of the A is short or long in every part of the word; as, �b, p�ter, it�; 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: <small><small>AA. CETEREIS</small></small> (i.e., a ceteris), <small><small>CALAASI, FAATO, HAACE, MAARCIVM, PAAPVS, PAASTORES, VAARVS</small></small>; and in Greek writing, <small><small>�AAPKOY YIOΣ MAAPKE��OΣ, KOINTON MAAPKION</small></small> (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.

:: <small><small>REFERENCE: Lewis and Short�s Latin Dictionary, Oxford, 1879.</small></small>
|}</div></div>

Preposition
infl|la|preposition|takes object in ablative case

1. of; from

Synonyms
ab

Derived terms
a lacte cunisque

Interjection
infl|la|interjection|head=�

1. ah

Mandarin
zh-hanzi|�

Pronunciation
IPA|lang=cmn|[a]

Interjection
cmn-inter|p|pinta|tas�

1. ah; oh

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

Pinyin
cmn-alt-pinyin|a|a0|a5

1. �: exclamatory particle
2. �:

Pinyin syllable
a

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

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.

Category:Mandarin pinyin
Category:zh:Beginning Mandarin|a

Min Nan
zh-hanzi|�

Pronunciation
IPA|[ a ]

Interjection
nan-inter|p|pojta|tas�

1. ah; oh

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

Novial

Preposition
infl|nov|preposition

1. to

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

Old English

Etymology
Germanic *term||aiwi-, from Indo-European *term|aiw-|vitality. Cognate with Old Saxon term|eo, Old High German term|io, term|eo (German term|je), Old Norse term|ei, term|ey (English term|aye), Gothic term|sc=Goth|����||age, eternity.

Pronunciation
IPA|lang=ang|/a:/

Adverb
infl|ang|adverb|head=�

1. ever, always

Polish

Pronunciation
IPA|lang=pl|/a/

Conjunction
infl|pl|conjunction

1. and; but

#: A ty? - �And you?�
#: Ty wolisz tabletki, a ja wol� zastrzyki. - �You prefer pills and I prefer injections.�

Category:Polish conjunctions

Portuguese

Etymology 1
From L.|pt term|illa

Article
infl|pt|article|gender=f|singular, definite

1. the

#: Lá vem a chuva. � �Here comes the rain.�

Declension
<table border="1">
<tr><th></th><th>masculine</th><th>feminine</th></tr>
<tr><th>singular</th><td>o</td><td>a</td></tr>
<tr><th>plural</th><td>os</td><td>as</td></tr>
</table>

Etymology 2
From L.|pt term|ad||to

Preposition
infl|pt|preposition

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� (*)
#:: a 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.�

1. at

#: Onde vai ele a esta hora da noite? � �Where is he going at this time of night?�

1. 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.�)

Usage notes
When followed by a definite article, a is combined with the article to give the following combined forms:
a + o#Portuguese|o: ao
a + os#Portuguese|os: aos
a + a: à
a + as#Portuguese|as: às

Synonyms
onym|pt|para|gloss=to, for

Pronoun
infl|pt|pronoun|gender=f|third person singular

1. her|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
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.

Becomes -na after a nasal diphthong: -ão, -am [��w�], -õe [õj], -em, -êm [ẽj].

In Brazil it is being abandoned in favor of the nominative form ela.

See also
em
para

Romanian

Pronunciation
IPA|/a/|lang=ro

Letter
infl|ro|letter|cat=alphabet|lowercase||capital|A

1. The first letter of the Romanian alphabet

Usage notes
In Romanian, the letter term|a represents the phoneme /a/.

See also
Next letter: �

Article
infl|ro|article|feminine singular possessive article

1. of

#: sora a lui Alexandru
#:: Alexandru's sister
#: cartea a mea
#:: my book

See also
al (masculine/neuter singular)
ai (masculine plural)
ale (feminine/neuter plural)

Preposition
infl|ro|preposition

1. (with infinitive verbs) to

#: a fi#Romanian|fi
#:: to be

Verb
ro-verbform|avea|person3s|timepres|tense=ind

1. (modal auxiliary) (he/she) has

#: A v�zut acest film? - �Has he/she seen this film?�

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

Serbian

Conjunction
infl|sr|conjunction

1. and
2. but

Cyrillic spelling
а#Serbian|а

Slovak

Conjunction
infl|sk|conjunction

1. and

Slovene

Conjunction
infl|sl|conjunction

1. but

Spanish

Alternative spellings
qualifier|obsolete á

Etymology
L.|es term|ad|lang=la||to

Pronunciation
IPA|langes|/a/, SAMPA|langes|/a/

Preposition
infl|es|preposition

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.�

Usage notes
sense|before words referring to people or personified objects Personal term|a is not translated in English.

See also
w:Spanish prepositions#a|Wikipedia article covering �personal a�

Yoruba

Pronoun
a

1. First-person plural subject pronoun, we:

#: a lo � �we went�

Category:Yoruba pronouns

af:a
am:a
ar:a
an:a
zh-min-nan:a
bs:a
br:a
ca:a
cs:a
cy:a
da:a
de:a
et:a
el:a
es:a
eo:a
fr:a
ga:a
gl:a
ko:a
hr:a
io:a
id:a
ia:a
ie:a
it:a
jv:a
csb:a
sw:a
ku:a
la:a
lt:a
li:a
hu:a
ms:a
nl:a
ja:a
no:a
oc:a
pl:a
pt:a
ro:a
ru:a
st:a
tn:a
sq:a
scn:a
simple:a
sk:a
sl:a
fi:a
sv:a
tl:a
ta:a
tt:a
te:a
th:a
vi:a
tr:a
ur:a
vo:a
ts:a
zh:a

• 2007-12-29 19:28 - EncycloPetey - /* Interjection */ rm quote; this is a use of [[a-]], and not as an interjection

Full Revision History