a en · NOUN · etymology 1
Pronunciation
- /eɪ/ (phoneme)
- /ɑː/ (phoneme)
- /æ/ (phoneme)
- /ə/ (phoneme)
Etymology
The letter name is from Middle English ā, from Old French, ultimately from Latin ā. Use of the Latin letter in (Old) English displaced the futhorc letter ᚪ (a) beginning in the 7th century, and partially also ᚫ (æ).
Meanings
-
The name of the Latin script letter A/a.
This piece somewhat resembles an a. On the left is a man seated on the ground, with a dog between his legs, and a large bird of prey in his hands, which appears to be biting his head.
1816, William Young Ottley, An Inquiry Into the Origin and Early History of Engraving […], volume II, London: […] John and Arthur Arch, […] by J. M'Creery, page 621:Compare Lydia's signature on some of the work orders with the warning notes. The loop through the lowercase a is similar. See what I mean?
2023, Amanda Stevens, Secret of Shutter Lake, Toronto, Ont.: Harlequin Intrigue, →ISBN, page 237:St Lynas was chatting with a group of rebellious young college students one day, who decried the moral standards of the past. ¶ So St Lynas drew an 'a' on some paper, and asked them what it was. ¶ 'A' they said.
1993, Frank Pagden, “Teaching”, in The Gospel According to St. Lynas, Tunbridge Wells: Mitre, →ISBN, unnumbered page:Letters should be spelled as follows; aes, bees, cees, dees, ees, efs, gees, aitches, ies, jays, kays, els, ems, ens, oes, pees, ques, ars, esses, tees, ues, vees, ws or dubleyuz, exes, wyes, zees.
[1906, Leigh H[adley] Irvine, “Abbreviations in General”, in The Magazine Style Code: A Manual For The Guidance Of Authors, Reporters And All Who Write, San Francisco, C.A.: Crown Publishing Company, pages 15–16:But with some prelude of disparagement, / Read, mouthing out his hollow oes and aes, / Deep-chested music, and to this result.
1842, Alfred Tennyson, “The Epic”, in Poems. […], volume II, London: Edward Moxon, […], →OCLC, page 2:
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| aes | Number=Plur | rare | lexicographic |
| a's | Number=Plur | lexicographic |
Deriveds
Relateds
zed · em · e · double-u · o · tee · pee · cue · cee · zee · u · el · kay · letter · ess · dee · wye · i · vee · aitch · en · ar · ex · gee · jay · ef · bee
Translations (53)
my အေ (name of the letter A, a) · ast a (name of the letter A, a) · fa اِی (name of the letter A, a) · el έι (name of the letter A, a) · bn এ (name of the letter A, a) · hu a (name of the letter A, a) · sv a (name of the letter A, a) · da a (name of the letter A, a) · tl a (name of the letter A, a) · pt á (name of the letter A, a) · ca a (name of the letter A, a) · haw ʻā (name of the letter A, a) · mr ए (name of the letter A, a) · ko 에이 (name of the letter A, a) · fa آ (name of the letter A, a) · ta ஏ (name of the letter A, a) · tr a (name of the letter A, a) · ar إِي (name of the letter A, a) · sl a (name of the letter A, a) · ro â (name of the letter A, a) · lv a (name of the letter A, a) · or ଏ (name of the letter A, a) · ar آ (name of the letter A, a) · es a (name of the letter A, a) · ru а (name of the letter A, a) · it a (name of the letter A, a) · th เอ (name of the letter A, a) · ja エー (name of the letter A, a) · oc a (name of the letter A, a) · he איי (name of the letter A, a) · vi a (name of the letter A, a) · om a (name of the letter A, a) · ase 𝣷𝪜 (name of the letter A, a) · ms e (name of the letter A, a) · fr a (name of the letter A, a) · ga ailm (name of the letter A, a) · pl a (name of the letter A, a) · io a (name of the letter A, a) · mk а (name of the letter A, a) · la ā (name of the letter A, a) · de A (name of the letter A, a) · hi ए (name of the letter A, a) · eo a (name of the letter A, a) · is a (name of the letter A, a) · ru эй (name of the letter A, a) · ga á (name of the letter A, a) · cmn 诶 (name of the letter A, a) · km អេ (name of the letter A, a) · gl a (name of the letter A, a) · bg а (name of the letter A, a) · mhr а (name of the letter A, a) · yo á (name of the letter A, a) · fi aa (name of the letter A, a)