From Middle English a- (“up, out, away”), from Old English ā-, originally *ar-, *or-, from Proto-West Germanic *uʀ-, from Proto-Germanic *uz- (“out-”), from Proto-Indo-European *uds- (“up, out”). Cognate with Old Saxon a-, German er-.
Meanings
(idiomatic, morpheme) Forming verbs with the sense away, up, on, out.
arise, await
(idiomatic, morpheme) Forming verbs with the sense of intensified action.
abide, amaze
a- en · X · etymology 10
Meanings
(morpheme, qualifier:Chester) Used as a prefix to verbs in the sense of remaining in the same condition. Actively doing something.
From Middle English a- (“on”), derived from unstressed Middle English an (“on”), from Old English an (“on”). See a (preposition, on, to, in, etc.)
Meanings
(idiomatic, morpheme, rare) In, on, at; used to show a state, condition, or manner. Also passing into sense 2.
aglow, apace, afire, aboil, a-bling, abluster
(idiomatic, morpheme) In, into. Also passing into sense 5.
asunder
(morpheme) In the direction of, or toward.
astern, abeam
(archaic, dialectal, morpheme) At such a time.
Come a-morning we are going hunting.
(archaic, dialectal, morpheme) In the act or process of. Used in some dialects before a present participle.
doins a-transpirin
circa 1850, Here We Come A-wassailing/Here We Come A-caroling
Here we come a-wassailing
Among the leaves so green;
Here we come a-wand’ring
So fair to be seen.
The hay is a-cutting now. You're a-wanting. 1947, A NORTH-COUNTY DUBLIN CLOSSARY
Oh waste no words a-wooing
The soft sleep to your bed; 1939, Alfred Edward Housman, Additional Poems, XIII, lines 6-7:
The order is rapidly fadin'
And the first one now will later be last
For the times they are a-changin' 1964, Bob Dylan, "The Times They Are a-Changin' " (recorded 1963, released 1964)
The twelfth day of Christmas,
My true love sent to me
Twelve lords a-leaping,
…
Eight maids a-milking,
Seven swans a-swimming,
Six geese a-laying, 1780, The Twelve Days of Christmas
hits a-poppin
If the van’s a-rockin’, don’t come a-knockin’. circa 1970, bumper sticker
From Middle English a-, a variant form of y-, from Old English ġe-, from Proto-West Germanic *ga-, from Proto-Germanic *ga-, from Proto-Indo-European *ḱóm (“with”).
Meanings
(alt-of, alternative, archaic, dialectal, morpheme) Alternative form of y-. In dialect, it is sometimes conflated with sense 5 of the previous definition, and is used as a general indicator of a participle.
From Ancient Greek ἀ- (a-), preconsonantal form of ἀν- (an-). Distant doublet of un-.
Meanings
(morpheme) Not, without, opposite of.
When invited to believe in the Chimaera, the horse-centaurs, or the winged horse Pegasus, all of them straightforward Pelasgian cult-symbols, a philosopher felt bound to reject them as a-zoölogical improbabilities …. 1948 (revised 1952), Robert Graves, The White Goddess, Faber & Faber 1999, page 7
If aroused outside the proper outlet of marriage, [female lust] could range out of control, turning its possessor into an a-feminine monster: that is what happened to fallen women. 2012, Faramerz Dabhoiwala, The Origins of Sex, Penguin, published 2013, page 191: