Learned borrowing from Latin -a (nominative second declension neuter plural suffix), plural counterpart to -um (nominative second declension neuter singular suffix).
Learned borrowing from Ancient Greek -α (-a, nominative second declension neuter plural suffix), plural counterpart to -ον (-on, nominative second declension neuter singular suffix).
Learned borrowing from Latin -a (nominative first declension neuter singular suffix)
Meanings
(morpheme) Marks singular nouns, with a foundation in Greek or Latin, often implying femininity, especially when contrasted with words terminating in -us.
(morpheme) Changes an element or substance into an oxide.
Added especially for metrical reasons, or as an empty filler syllable.
Meanings
(morpheme) Added for metrical reasons to songs, poetry and verse, or as an empty filler syllable to other speech.
"I'm-a tell-a you why you better be. I named you in my will, Franco." 2014, Don Pendleton, California Hit, Open Road Media, →ISBN:
A merry heart goes all the day
Your sad tires in a mile-a c. 1610–1611 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Winters Tale”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act IV, scene iii]:
Buying bread from a man in Brussels
He was six-foot-four and full of muscle
I said, "Do you speak-a my language?"
He just smiled and gave me a Vegemite sandwich […] 1981, Colin Hay, Ron Strykert, performed by Men At Work, Down Under:
I love to sing-a / about the moon-a and the June-a and the spring-a, / I love to sing-a / about a sky of blue-a, or a tea for two-a. 1936 July 18, Leon Schlesinger (producer) / Norman Spencer (music), I Love to Singa
I wanna wanna wanna wanna wanna wanna really wanna be just like the Lord
So every day Im gonna gonna read the Book and rest upon-a God's own holy Word
Of good in me there's none-a none-a that's okay because I'm gonna trust upon the work that's done-a on the Cross
and Jesus is the one-a one-a God the Father's Son-a Son-a and my sin He cures! 1980s, Herb Owen, “Wanna”, in Kids Sing Praise, performed by Kids Sing Praise:
"Jesus Christ! Was my folks refined. My mam she wouldn't think-a lettin' us young'uns call a pee pot a pee pot. A chamber's what she called it... And by God! Us young'uns had ter call the pee pot a chamber or git our God damn necks wrang." 1946, Elizabeth Metzger Howard, Before the Sun Goes Down, page 31:
-a en · X · etymology 8
Pronunciation
/ə/ (General-American, Received-Pronunciation)
Etymology
Contraction of to.
Meanings
(informal, morpheme) to (infinitive marker)
wanna
oughta
gotta
gonna
-a en · X · etymology 9
Pronunciation
/ə/ (General-American, Received-Pronunciation)
Etymology
Contraction of do.
Meanings
(informal, morpheme) do (infinitive marker)
whatta
Yeah, Flav, I'm tired of them dissing brothers in the P.E. out there, we got to do something about this/(What-a we do? What-a we do?) 1988, Living Colour, “Funny Vibe”, Epic: