a-

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Translingual

Etymology

From the Ancient Greek ἀ- (a-, not, without).

Prefix

a-

  1. Used to form taxonomic names indicating a lack of some feature that might be expected

Derived terms

English

Etymology 1

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-.

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ə/
  • Audio (US):(file)

Prefix

a-

  1. (no longer productive) Forming verbs with the sense away, up, on, out.
    arise, await
  2. (no longer productive) Forming verbs with the sense of intensified action.
    abide, amaze

Etymology 2

Pronunciation

Prefix

a-

  1. (rare or no longer productive) In, on, at; used to show a state, condition, or manner. Also passing into sense 2. [1]
    aglow, apace, afire, aboil, a-bling, abluster
  2. (no longer productive) In, into. Also passing into sense 5. [1]
    asunder
  3. In the direction of, or toward. [1]
    astern, abeam
  4. (archaic or dialectal) At such a time. [1]
    Come a-morning we are going hunting.
  5. (archaic or dialectal) In the act or process of. Used in some dialects before a present participle. [1]
    hits a-poppin
    doins a-transpirin [doings a-transpiring]
    • 1780, The Twelve Days of Christmas:
      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,
    • 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.
    • 1939, Alfred Edward Housman, Additional Poems, XIII, lines 6-7:
      Oh waste no words a-wooing
      The soft sleep to your bed;
    • 1964, Bob Dylan, "The Times They Are a-Changin' " (recorded 1963, released 1964):
      The order is rapidly fadin'
      And the first one now will later be last
      For the times they are a-changin'
    • circa 1970, bumper sticker:[2]
      If the van’s a-rockin’, don’t come a-knockin’.
Usage notes

Adjectives formed with this prefix are often restricted to predicative use, owing to their origin as prepositional phrases with the preposition "on." For example, one may say "the ship is afire," but not "the afire ship," just as one may say "the ship is on fire," but not "the on fire ship."

Etymology 3

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).

Alternative forms

Pronunciation

Prefix

a-

  1. Alternative form of y- (archaic and dialectal) In dialect, it is sometimes conflated with sense 5 of the previous definition, and is used as a general indicator of a participle. [1]
    aware, alike
  2. (Devon) Used to form the past participle of a verb.
    I have a-gone.
    I have a-seen a bird.

Etymology 4

From Anglo-Norman a-, from Old French e-, from Latin ex-.

Pronunciation

Prefix

a-

  1. (no longer productive) Forming words with the sense of wholly, or utterly out. [1]
    abash

Etymology 5

From Ancient Greek ἀ- (a-) (ἀν- (an-) immediately followed by a vowel).

Pronunciation

Prefix

a-

  1. Not, without, opposite of.
    amoral, asymmetry, atheism, asexual, acyclic, atypical
    • 1948 (revised 1952), Robert Graves, The White Goddess, Faber & Faber 1999, page 7:
      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 .
    • 2012, Faramerz Dabhoiwala, The Origins of Sex, Penguin, published 2013, page 191:
      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.
Usage notes
  • This prefix is referred to as alpha privative.
  • Used with stems that begin with consonants except sometimes h. an- is synonymous and is used in front of words that start with vowels and sometimes h.[3] For example, anesthetic and analgesic.
Synonyms
Translations

Etymology 6

From Middle English a-, from Middle French a-, from Latin ad (towards).

Prefix

a-

  1. (no longer productive) Towards; Used to indicate direction, reduction to, increase to, change into, or motion. [1]
    ascend, aspire, amass, abandon, avenue
Usage notes
  • Used on stems that started with sc, sp, or st, and also used on stems with a French origin.
  • Used in place of ad-.[4]

Etymology 7

From Latin ab (of, off, from, away).

Prefix

a-

  1. (no longer productive) Away from. [1]
    avert, aperient, abridge, assoil,[3] assoilzie
Usage notes
  • Variation of the prefix ab-, only used when the stem starts with the letter p or v, [3] or (rarely) s in which case the s is doubled (as in assoil and assoilzie).

Etymology 8

From Middle English a-, o- (of). See a (preposition, of).

Prefix

a-

  1. (no longer productive) Of, from. [1]
    anew, afresh, athirst[3]
Usage notes

Different Germanic and Latinate senses of a- became confused (vaguely “intensive") and are all unproductive. The Greek sense of “not” (e.g., amoral, asymmetry) remains in use.

“t naturally happened that all these a- prefixes were at length confusedly lumped together in idea, and the resultant a- looked upon as vaguely intensive, rhetorical, euphonic , or even archaic, and wholly otiose .” OED.
Derived terms

References

  1. 1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 Brown, Lesley (2003)
  2. ^ See “Don’t Come A-Knockin’”, TV Tropes for more examples and discussion.
  3. 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 Urdang, Laurence (1984)
  4. ^ Lindberg, Christine A. (2007)

Etymology 9

Prefix

a-

  1. Alternative form of -a (empty syllable added to songs, poetry, verse and other speech)
    A-tisket a-tasket,
    A green and yellow basket

Etymology 10

Prefix

a-

  1. (Chester) Used as a prefix to verbs in the sense of remaining in the same condition.[1] Actively doing something.
    a-be, a-going
    Let that choilt a-be, wilt ta.Let that child alone, will you.[1]

References

  1. 1.0 1.1 Robert Holland, M.R.A.C., A Glossary of Words Used in the County of Chester, Part I--A to F., English Dialect Society, London, 1884, 1

A-Pucikwar

Prefix

a-

  1. prefix attached to words relating to the mouth, such as the names of languages

Catalan

Etymology 1

Borrowed from Ancient Greek ἀ- (a-).

Prefix

a-

  1. a- (not, without)
    a- + ‎moral (moral) → ‎amoral (amoral)
Derived terms

Etymology 2

From Latin ad (towards).

Prefix

a-

  1. used to make verbs from adjectives and nouns
    a- + ‎feble (weak) → ‎afeblir (to weaken)
    a- + ‎sabor (taste) → ‎assaborir (to taste)
Derived terms

Further reading

Danish

Prefix

a-

  1. a-, un- (not)
  2. A- (atomic, nuclear)
    Synonyms: atom-, A-

Derived terms

Dutch

Etymology

From Ancient Greek ἀ- (a-) (ἀν- (an-) immediately preceding a vowel).

Pronunciation

Prefix

a-

  1. a-: not, without, opposite of

Derived terms

See also

Esperanto

Etymology

From Ancient Greek ἀ- (a-).

Prefix

a-

  1. without, -less

Derived terms

Fingallian

Etymology

From Middle English a- (on), derived from unstressed Middle English an (on), from Old English an (on).

Prefix

a-

  1. Used to show a state, condition, or manner.
    • A NORTH-COUNTY DUBLIN CLOSSARY:
      The hay is a-cutting now. You're a-wanting.

References

  • J. J. Hogan and Patrick C. O'Neill (1947) Béaloideas Iml. 17, Uimh 1/2, An Cumann Le Béaloideas Eireann/Folklore of lreland Society, page 263

Finnish

Etymology

Internationalism (see English a-), ultimately from Ancient Greek ἀ- (a-).

Pronunciation

Prefix

a-

  1. (in loanwords) a-, non-, un-
    Synonym: epä-

Franco-Provençal

Etymology

Inherited from Latin ad-.

Prefix

a- (ORB)

  1. Attaches to verbs, sometimes adding a sense of "toward".

Derived terms

French

Pronunciation

Etymology 1

Inherited from Old French a-, from Latin ad-.

Prefix

a-

  1. A prefix forming words, especially verbs, that denote entering a state, making progress toward a goal, or the like.

Etymology 2

From Ancient Greek ἀ- (a-) (ἀν- (an-) immediately preceding a vowel; generalized from the many Latin borrowings using this prefix.

Prefix

a-

  1. a-, non-, -less

Derived terms

Further reading

Galician

Etymology 1

From Old Galician-Portuguese a-, from Latin ad-.

Prefix

a-

  1. added to adjective X, forms verbs meaning to make/turn X
    a- + ‎curto (short) + ‎-ar → ‎acurtar (to shorten)
  2. added to noun X, forms verbs meaning to cause or make X or to cause something to have X
    a- + ‎fervor (passion) + ‎-ar → ‎afervoar (to excite)

Etymology 2

Borrowed from Ancient Greek ἀ- (a-), from Proto-Indo-European *n̥-.

Prefix

a-

  1. a- (not; without)
    Synonym: in-

Derived terms

German

Etymology

From Ancient Greek ἀ- (a-) (ἀν- (an-) immediately preceding a vowel).

Pronunciation

Prefix

a-

  1. a- (not, without, opposite of)

Derived terms

Further reading

  • a-” in Duden online
  • a-” in Digitales Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache

Hanunoo

Etymology

From Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *ha- (adjectival prefix for adjectives of measure). Compare Bikol Central ha- and Cebuano ha-.

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ʔa/
  • Syllabification: a-

Prefix

a- (Hanunoo spelling )

  1. adjectival prefix to words denoting height, length, or depth

Derived terms

Further reading

  • Blust, Robert; Trussel, Stephen; et al. (2023) “*ha-₁”, in the CLDF dataset from The Austronesian Comparative Dictionary (2010–), →DOI

Indonesian

Etymology

From Sanskrit अ- (a-, un-, not), from Proto-Indo-Iranian *a-, from Proto-Indo-European *n̥-.

Pronunciation

Prefix

a-

  1. a- (not, without, opposite of)

Derived terms

Further reading

Irish

Alternative forms

  • ai- (before a palatalized consonant, both etymologies)

Pronunciation

Etymology 1

From Ancient Greek ἀ- (a-) (ἀν- (an-) immediately followed by a vowel).

Pronunciation

Prefix

a-

  1. a- (not, without, opposite of)
Derived terms

Etymology 2

Prefix

a-

  1. Alternative form of ath- used before t

Italian

Italian Wikipedia has an article on:
Wikipedia it

Etymology 1

Inherited from Latin ad-.

Prefix

a-

  1. ad- (indicating direction)
Usage notes

Etymology 2

Borrowed from Ancient Greek ἀ- (a-).

Prefix

a-

  1. a- (indicating lack or loss)
Alternative forms
  • an- (before a vowel)

Derived terms

Japhug

Etymology

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Pronunciation

Prefix

a-

  1. (Kamnyu) my

Derived terms

See also

Japhug (Kamnyu) personal pronouns and possessive prefixes
Number Person Possessive prefixes Free pronoun Genitive
Singular 1st a- aʑo, aj aʑɯɣ
2nd nɤ- nɤʑo, nɤj nɤʑɯɣ
3rd ɯ- ɯʑo ɯʑɤɣ
Dual 1st tɕi- tɕiʑo tɕiʑɤɣ
2nd ndʑi- ndʑiʑo ndʑiʑɤɣ
3rd ʑɤni ʑɤniɣɯ
Plural 1st i- iʑo, iʑora, iʑɤra iʑɤɣ, iʑɤra ɣɯ
2nd nɯ- nɯʑo, nɯʑora, nɯʑɤra nɯʑɤɣ, nɯʑɤra ɣɯ
3rd ʑara ʑaraɣ, ʑara ɣɯ
Generic tɯ- tɯʑo

Latin

Etymology 1

Prefix

ā-

  1. Alternative form of ab-
Usage notes

Used before bilabial voiced consonants: b-, m- and v-.

Etymology 2

From ad (towards).

Prefix

a-

  1. (Before a word beginning with sc, sp or st) Alternative form of ad-
    a- + ‎scandere (climb) → ‎ascendere (climb up, go up; rise, spring up)
    a- + ‎scrībere (write) → ‎ascrībere (state in writing, add in writing; insert; appoint, enroll, enfranchise, reckon, number)
    a- + ‎spīrāre (breathe) → ‎aspīrāre (breathe or blow upon; am favorable to, assist, favor, aid; aspire or desire (to); approach, come near (to))
    a- + ‎specere (observe, look at) → ‎aspicere (look at or towards, behold; regard, respect; observe, notice; examine, inspect; consider, ponder)
    a- + ‎stringere (press, tighten, compress) → ‎astringere (draw close, bind or tie together; tighten, contract; check, restrain; oblige, necessitate)
    a- + ‎struere (compose, construct, build; ready, prepare; place, arrange) → ‎astruere (build near or to a thing, erect; build on, heap; build an additional structure)

Latvian

Etymology

Via other European languages, ultimately from Ancient Greek ἀ- (a-) (ἀν- (an-) immediately preceding a vowel).

Pronunciation

Prefix

a-

  1. Not, not having, without, opposite of.
    a- + ‎seksuāls → ‎aseksuāls

Mohawk

Alternative forms

  • aon- (before s- (iterative) and t- (cislocative))

Prefix

a-

  1. irrealis prefix

References

  • Nora Deering, Helga H. Delisle (1976) Mohawk: A teaching grammar (preliminary version), Quebec: Manitou College, page 332

Murui Huitoto

Pronunciation

Prefix

a-

  1. (unproductive) Used to form a few adverbs signifying a location or motion from or to above.

Derived terms

References

  • Katarzyna Izabela Wojtylak (2017) A grammar of Murui (Bue): a Witotoan language of Northwest Amazonia., Townsville: James Cook University press (PhD thesis), page 145

Prefix

a-

  1. someone's, people's

Usage notes

This prefix is often used as a neutral possessive pronoun to make the citation forms of inalienable nouns: amá (someone's mother), akʼos (someone's neck), ajáád (someone's leg), ajááʼ (someone's ear), akʼéí (someone's kin). The alternative is to use the prefix ha- (one's) or bi- (his/her/its/their) to make these dictionary forms.

See also

Neapolitan

Etymology

Inherited from Latin ad-.

Prefix

a-

  1. compare Italian a-

Derived terms

Northern Ndebele

Etymology 1

From Proto-Bantu *gá-.

Prefix

a- (medial wa-)

  1. they; class 6 subject concord.

Etymology 2

From Proto-Bantu *gáá-.

Prefix

a-

  1. of; class 6 possessive concord.

Etymology 3

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Prefix

a-

  1. Class 6 relative concord.

Norwegian Bokmål

Etymology 1

From the first letter of the Norwegian alphabet a, from Latin a, from Ancient Greek Α (A, alpha), likely through the Etruscan language, from Phoenician 𐤀 (ʾ), from Proto-Canaanite , from Proto-Sinaitic , from Egyptian 𓃾.

Pronunciation

Prefix

a-

  1. indicating the first or best in something
    Synonyms: a, A-
    a- + ‎lag → ‎a-lag

Etymology 2

From Ancient Greek ἀ- (a-, not, without), from Proto-Hellenic *ə- (un-, not; without, lacking), from Proto-Indo-European *n̥- (not, un-). Doublet of u-.

Compare an- (ἀν- (an-) immediately preceding a vowel).

Prefix

a-

  1. a- (not, without, opposite of)
    Synonyms: a, an-
    a- + ‎politisk (political) → ‎apolitisk (apolitical)
    a- + ‎sosial (social) → ‎asosial (asocial)
    a- + ‎symmetrisk (symmetrical) → ‎asymmetrisk (asymmetrical)
    a- + ‎gnostiker (gnostic) → ‎agnostiker (agnostic)
Alternative forms
Derived terms

Etymology 3

Clipping of atom-, from the noun atom (atom), from Ancient Greek ἄτομος (átomos, indivisible, uncut, undivided), whereas atombombe is a calque of English atomic bomb.

Prefix

a-

  1. Short for atom-.
    a- + ‎bombe → ‎a-bombe

References

  • “a-” in The Bokmål Dictionary.
  • “a-” in Det Norske Akademis ordbok (NAOB).
  • a-” in Store norske leksikon

Anagrams

Norwegian Nynorsk

Etymology

From Ancient Greek ἀ- (a-, not, without).

Prefix

a-

  1. a- (not, without)

Derived terms

References

Old English

Alternative forms

Etymology

From an earlier form ar-, from Proto-West Germanic *uʀ-, from Proto-Germanic *uz-. Cognate with Old High German ar-, ir- (German er-).

Pronunciation

Prefix

ā-

  1. from, away, off, out
    ānimanto take away, to remove

Derived terms

Descendants

  • Middle English: a-
    • English: a-

Old French

Etymology

From Latin ad, which was often reduced to a- in compounds.

Prefix

a-

  1. indicating movement towards something
  2. (by extension) indicating a change of state
  3. intensifying prefix
  4. alternative form of es-

Derived terms

Old Irish

Prefix

a- (class A infixed pronoun)

  1. him (triggers eclipsis)
  2. it (triggers lenition)

Usage notes

This form merges with the prefixes ro-, no-, di-, to-, fo-, ar-, and imm- to form ra-, na-, da-, da-, fa-, ara-, imma- respectively. It disappears after the particle (not), its only trace being the mutation it causes (eclipsis in the case of the masculine, lenition in the case of the neuter), thus ní cara (does not love) vs. ní chara (does not love it), ní ben (does not strike) vs. ní mben (does not strike him).

Derived terms

See also

Old Javanese

Pronunciation

Etymology 1

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Prefix

a-

  1. active verb forming
    Synonyms: (m)aN-, -um-
  2. adjective forming

Etymology 2

Borrowed from Sanskrit अ- (a-, un-, not)

Prefix

a-

  1. un-, not

Derived terms

Old Saxon

Etymology

From an earlier form ar-, from Proto-Germanic *uz-. Cognate with Old English a-, Old High German ar-, ir- (German er-).

Pronunciation

Prefix

a-

  1. forming words with the sense from, away, out, off, e.g. animan

Derived terms

Phuthi

Etymology

From Proto-Bantu *gá-.

Prefix

a- (medial wa-)

  1. they; class 6 subject concord.

Polish

Alternative forms

Etymology

Learned borrowing from Ancient Greek ἀ- (a-).

Pronunciation

Prefix

a-

  1. forming words with the sense of negation, a-
    a- + ‎społeczny → ‎aspołeczny

Derived terms

Further reading

  • a- in Polish dictionaries at PWN

Portuguese

Pronunciation

Etymology 1

From Old Galician-Portuguese a-, from Latin ad-.

Prefix

a-

  1. added to adjective X, forms verbs meaning to make/turn X
    a- + ‎vermelho (red) + ‎-ar → ‎avermelhar (to redden)
    a- + ‎baixo (low) + ‎-ar → ‎abaixar (to lower)
  2. added to noun X, forms verbs meaning to cause or make X or to cause something to have X
    a- + ‎pavor (dread) + ‎-ar → ‎apavorar (to frighten)
    a- + ‎fama (fame) + ‎-ar → ‎afamar (to make famous)

Etymology 2

Borrowed from Ancient Greek ἀ- (a-), from Proto-Indo-European *n̥-.

Prefix

a-

  1. a- (not; without)
    Synonym: in-

Derived terms

Sardinian

Etymology

Inherited from Classical Latin ad-, from the preposition ad (to, towards).

Prefix

a-

  1. ad- (toward, to, tendency)

Derived terms

Scots

Pronunciation

Etymology 1

From Middle English a- (on), derived from unstressed Middle English an (on), from Old English an (on).

Prefix

a-

  1. on
    aback, agley, agrufe, athort, atween

Etymology 2

From Middle English a-, from Old English of- (off).

Prefix

a-

  1. off
    adoon

Etymology 3

From Old Norse at- (to).

Prefix

a-

  1. to
    adae, agae

Etymology 4

From Middle English a- (up, out, away), from Old English ā-, originally *ar-, *or-, from Proto-Germanic *uz- (out-).

Prefix

a-

  1. away from
    abide, arise

Etymology 5

From Middle English and-, from Old English and- (against, back), from Proto-Germanic *andi- (across, opposite, against, away).

Prefix

a-

  1. against, opposite
    alang

Etymology 6

From Middle English a-, from Old English ane (one).

Prefix

a-

  1. one
    awhile

Etymology 7

From ah!

Prefix

a-

  1. ah
    aweel, alake

Etymology 8

From Middle English a-, from Middle French a-, from Latin ad (towards).

Prefix

a-

  1. towards
    avise

Etymology 9

From Latin ab (of, off, from, away).

Prefix

a-

  1. away from
    assoilzie

References

Serbo-Croatian

Etymology

From Ancient Greek ἀ- (a-) (ἀν- (an-) immediately preceding a vowel), from Proto-Indo-European *n̥- (un-, not), zero-grade form of *ne (not). Doublet of ne.

Prefix

a- (Cyrillic spelling а-)

  1. Prefix prepended to words to denote a negation, deprivation or absence of a property denoted by base word.
    Synonyms: bez-, ne-
    a- + ‎sȍcijālan → ‎ȁsocijālan
    a- + ‎simètrija → ‎asimètrija
    a- + ‎brahija → ‎abrahija

References

  • a-”, in Hrvatski jezični portal [Croatian language portal] (in Serbo-Croatian), 2006–2024

Southern Ndebele

Etymology 1

From Proto-Bantu *gá-.

Prefix

a- (medial wa-)

  1. they; class 6 subject concord.

Etymology 2

From Proto-Bantu *gáá-.

Prefix

a-

  1. of; class 6 possessive concord.

Etymology 3

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Prefix

a-

  1. Class 6 relative concord.

Spanish

Etymology 1

Inherited from Latin ad-.

Prefix

a-

  1. forms words, especially verbs, that denote entering a state, making progress toward a goal, or the like
See also

Etymology 2

From Ancient Greek ἀ- (a-) (ἀν- (an-) immediately preceding a vowel; generalized from the many Latin borrowings using this prefix.

Prefix

a-

  1. a-, non-, -less
Usage notes
  • Used with stems that begin with consonants except h. an- is synonymous and is used in front of words that start with vowels and h. For example, analfabetismo (analphabetism).

Derived terms

Further reading

Swahili

Etymology 1

From Proto-Bantu *à-.

Prefix

a-

  1. she, he; 3rd person singular (m class(I)) subject concord
    Antonym: ha-
See also

Etymology 2

Prefix

a-

  1. Contraction of a- + -a- (3rd person singular (m class(I)) gnomic).

Swazi

Etymology 1

From Proto-Bantu *à-.

Prefix

a- (medial ka-)

  1. he, she, it; class 1 subject concord, used in the subjunctive and potential mood.
See also
  • u- (in other cases)

Etymology 2

From Proto-Bantu *gá-.

Prefix

a- (medial wa-)

  1. they; class 6 subject concord.

Etymology 3

From Proto-Bantu *gáá-.

Prefix

a-

  1. of; class 6 possessive concord.

Tagal Murut

Etymology

From Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *ma-, from Proto-Austronesian *ma- (stative prefix).

Prefix

a-

  1. used to form adjectives indicating a quality
    a- + ‎amis (sweetness) → ‎a-amis (sweet)
    a- + ‎laat (badness) → ‎a-laat (bad)

Tagalog

Etymology 1

Borrowed from Spanish a, from Latin ad.

Pronunciation

Prefix

a- (Baybayin spelling )

  1. at (indicating time)
    Puntahan kita sa a-primero ng Marso.
    I'll go to you at the first of March.
    Sahuran tuwing a-kinse ng bawat buwan.
    It is payday every 15th of every month.
    A-treynta y uno kahapon.
    Yesterday was the 31st.
Usage notes
  • Only used before Spanish cardinal numbers to tell the date for a month. For the first day of a month, a-primero is more correct but a-uno is also used by younger speakers. The prefix has the same function as ika- for Tagalog cardinal numbers.
  • The prefix is optional but Spanish-oriented speakers often use it.
Derived terms

Etymology 2

Pronunciation

Prefix

á- (Baybayin spelling ) (dialectal, chiefly Mindoro)

  1. forms contemplative aspect forms for verbs in the object or directional trigger
Usage notes

See also

Tashelhit

Etymology

From Proto-Berber.

Prefix

a-.

  1. the masculine form of nouns.
  2. the masculine form of adjectives.

Tooro

Alternative forms

  • (before -a- or subjunctive -e-) y-
  • (before vowels in other cases) ay-

Etymology

From Proto-Bantu *à-.

Pronunciation

Prefix

a-

  1. he, she; class 1 subject concord
    a- + ‎-kora (to do) → ‎akora (he/she does)

See also

References

  • Kaji, Shigeki (2007) A Rutooro Vocabulary, Tokyo: Research Institute for Languages and Cultures of Asia and Africa (ILCAA), →ISBN, page 413

Welsh

Pronunciation

Prefix

a-

  1. affirmative prefix, emphasises prefixed word
    a- + ‎trist (sad) → ‎athrist (very sad, sorrowful)
    a- + ‎traidd (piercing, penetration) → ‎athraidd (permeable)

Usage notes

Triggers aspirate mutation of the following consonant.

Derived terms

Mutation

Mutated forms of a-
radical soft nasal h-prothesis
a- unchanged unchanged ha-

Note: Certain mutated forms of some words can never occur in standard Welsh.
All possible mutated forms are displayed for convenience.

References

  • R. J. Thomas, G. A. Bevan, P. J. Donovan, A. Hawke et al., editors (1950–present), “a-”, in Geiriadur Prifysgol Cymru Online (in Welsh), University of Wales Centre for Advanced Welsh & Celtic Studies

Xhosa

Etymology 1

From Proto-Bantu *gá-.

Prefix

a- (medial wa-)

  1. they; class 6 subject concord.

Etymology 2

From Proto-Bantu *gáá-.

Prefix

a-

  1. of; class 6 possessive concord.

Etymology 3

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Prefix

a-

  1. Class 6 relative concord.

Etymology 4

From Proto-Bantu *nkà-.

Prefix

a-

  1. not
Usage notes

Used in the indicative mood, prefixed to the subject concord.

Ye'kwana

Variant orthographies
ALIV a-
Brazilian standard a-
New Tribes a-

Pronunciation

Prefix

a-

  1. allomorph of öt- (detransitivizing prefix)
  2. allomorph of ö- (second-person prefix) used for stems that begin with a consonant and have a first vowel a or e

Inflection

Zulu

Etymology 1

From Proto-Bantu *à-.

Prefix

á- (medial ká-)

  1. he, she, it; class 1 subject concord, used in the subjunctive and potential mood.
See also
  • u- (in other cases)

Etymology 2

From Proto-Bantu *gá-.

Prefix

á- (medial wá-)

  1. they; class 6 subject concord.

Etymology 3

From Proto-Bantu *gáá-.

Prefix

a-

  1. of; class 6 possessive concord.

Etymology 4

Originally a reduced form of la- (general demonstrative). Compare Swazi relative forms such as lesi-, which still keep the initial l-.

Prefix

ā́-

  1. Used to form relative clauses.
Usage notes

This prefix has conditioned allomorphs o- and e-.

Etymology 5

From a- (relative) +‎ a- (class 6).

Prefix

ā́-

  1. Class 6 relative concord.

Etymology 6

From Proto-Bantu *nkà-.

Prefix

a-

  1. not
Usage notes

Used in the indicative mood, prefixed to the subject concord.

Alternative forms

Etymology 7

Prefix

a-

  1. Alternative form of ma- (hortative)

References