fa

Translingual

Symbol

fa

1. (international standards) ISO 639-1 language code for Persian.

English

Alternative forms

• fah

Etymology

From Latin famuli, from the first word of the fourth line of Ut queant laxis, the medieval hymn which solfège was based on because its lines started on each note of the scale successively.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /fɑ/

• Audio (Southern England)

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɑː

Noun

fa (plural fas)

1. (music) A syllable used in solfège to represent the fourth diatonic (or sixth chromatic) note of a major scale.
   • 1749, Henry Fielding, “Containing the Arrival of an Irish Gentleman, with very extraordinary Adventures which ensued at the Inn”, in The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling, volume IV, London: A Millar, , →OCLC, book X, pages 11–12:

     And now Mrs. Waters (for we muſt confeſs ſhe was in the ſame Bed) being, I ſuppoſe, awakened from her Sleep, and ſeeing two Men fighting in her Bed-chamber, began to ſcream in the moſt violent Manner, crying out Murder! Robbery! and more frequently Rape! which laſt, ſome, perhaps, may wonder ſhe ſhould mention, who do not conſider that theſe Words of Exclamation are uſed by Ladies in a Fright, as Fa, la, la, ra, da, &c. are in Muſic, only as the Vehicles of Sound, and without any fixed Ideas.

Derived terms

sol-fa

Translations

See also

Anagrams

• AF, af

Catalan

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): (Central, Balearic, Valencian)
• Rhymes: -a

Etymology 1

Noun

fa m (plural fas)

1. (music) fa (fourth note of diatonic scale)

Etymology 2

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

Verb

fa

1. third-person singular present indicative of fer

Preposition

fa

1. ago

   fa molts anys...

   many years ago...

Interjection

fa

1. (dialectal) a particle used in some dialects to emphasize a negative sentence

   Fa que no es veu!

   it’s obvious!

   (literally, “it does that it's not seen!”)

Chichewa

Etymology

From Proto-Bantu *-kúa.

Verb

-fa (infinitive kufá)

1. to die

Derived terms

• Verbal derivations:
  • Applicative: -fera

• Nominal derivations:
  • imfa (“death”)

Czech

Noun

fa

1. Abbreviation of firma.

Declension

This noun needs an inflection-table template.

Dutch

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin fa.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /faː/

• Audio

  (file)

• Hyphenation: fa
• Rhymes: -aː

Noun

fa m (plural fa's, diminutive faatje n)

1. (music) fa (fourth diatonic (or sixth chromatic) musical note)
2. (music) F (the musical clef or key)

Derived terms

• fasleutel

French

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /fa/

• Audio (Paris)

  (file)

Noun

fa m (plural fa)

1. (music) fa, the fourth diatonic (or sixth chromatic) note 'F'

Derived terms

• clef de fa

Further reading

• “fa”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé , 2012.

Galician

Noun

fa m (plural fas)

1. (music) fa (musical note)
2. (music) F (the musical note or key)

See also

• (musical notes) nota musical; dó, re, mi, fa, sol, la, si ^{(Category: gl:Music)}

Gothic

Romanization

fa

1. Romanization of 𐍆𐌰

Hadza

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /fa/,

Verb

fa

1. to drink

Hungarian

Etymology

From Proto-Uralic *puwe. Cognates include Finnish puu.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key):

• Audio

  (file)

• Rhymes: -fɒ

Noun

fa (countable and uncountable, plural fák)

1. tree (large woody plant)

   Meronyms: rügy, hajtás, vessző, gally, ág, törzs, gyökér, levél, lomb, korona, termés, gyümölcs

2. wood (substance beneath the bark of the trunk or branches of a tree)
3. (graph theory) tree (connected graph with no cycles)
4. (computing theory) tree (recursive data structure)
5. (attributive) wooden (made of wood)

Declension

Derived terms

References

Further reading

• (tree, wood): fa in Bárczi, Géza and László Országh. A magyar nyelv értelmező szótára (‘The Explanatory Dictionary of the Hungarian Language’, abbr.: ÉrtSz.). Budapest: Akadémiai Kiadó, 1959–1962. Fifth ed., 1992: →ISBN
• (“fa”, a syllable used in solfège to represent the fourth note of a major scale; alternative form of fá): fa in Bárczi, Géza and László Országh. A magyar nyelv értelmező szótára (‘The Explanatory Dictionary of the Hungarian Language’, abbr.: ÉrtSz.). Budapest: Akadémiai Kiadó, 1959–1962. Fifth ed., 1992: →ISBN
• fa in Ittzés, Nóra (ed.). A magyar nyelv nagyszótára (‘A Comprehensive Dictionary of the Hungarian Language’). Budapest: Akadémiai Kiadó, 2006–2031 (work in progress; published A–ez as of 2024)

Irish

Etymology 1

Alternative forms

• fá, ba, badh, budh

Particle

fa (triggers h-prothesis)

1. Obsolete form of ba (“was”) (past affirmative and relative of is).
   • 2014 [1628–1634], Geoffrey Keating, edited by Beatrix Färber, David Comyn, Patrick S. Dinneen, Foras Feasa ar Éirinn‎, CELT: Corpus of Electronic Texts:

     gurab Alba fá hainm don chrích sin

     that that country’s name was Scotland

   • 1939 [c. 13th century], “Bean ós mhnáibh cáich Cailleach Dé”, in Lambert McKenna, editor, Aithdioghluim Dána‎, Dublin:

     Is leomhan Ó mBriun an bhean / siur ga seoladh [ar] a son, / síol na n-ealta fa díon damh, / síol glan nach ba creachta ar gcrodh.

     A lion-hero of the Í Bhriuin is this lady, a sister that guides them by her words; noble the offspring of that flock, my guardians (ensuring) that all I own be safe from harrying.

     (literally, “(…) the seed of the flock which was protection to me, noble seed (…)”)

Related terms

Etymology 2

Preposition

fa (plus dative, triggers lenition)

1. Obsolete form of faoi (“under”).
2. Obsolete form of um (“about, concerning”).

Usage notes

In the meaning about it was followed by a noun in accusative.

Italian

Etymology 1

Alternative forms

• fa', fai (imperative form only)

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈfa/^*
• Rhymes: -a
• Hyphenation: fà
• Unlike for the musical note below, this word always triggers syntactic gemination. Hence for example fa freddo (“it's cold”, literally “it makes cold”) is pronounced /ˈfa‿fˈfreddo/.

Verb

fa

1. inflection of fare:
   1. third-person singular present indicative
   2. second-person singular imperative

Adverb

fa

1. ago

   Synonym: prima

Etymology 2

Italian Wikipedia has an article on:

Fa (nota)

Wikipedia ^it

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈfa/^°
• IPA^(key): (traditional) /ˈfa/^*
• Rhymes: -a
• Hyphenation: fà
• Unlike for the verb form and derived adverb, this word (and other terms for musical notes) do not trigger syntactic gemination in modern usage, although they did traditionally. Hence fa sol la (“fa sol la”) is now pronounced /ˈfa ˈsɔl ˈla/, but traditionally /ˈfa‿sˈsɔl ˈla/.

Noun

fa m (invariable)

2. (music) fa (fourth diatonic (or sixth chromatic) musical note)
3. F (musical note or key)

Japanese

Romanization

fa

1. Rōmaji transcription of ふぁ
2. Rōmaji transcription of ファ

Kabyle

Verb

fa (intensive aorist yettfay, aorist ifa, preterite ifa, negative preterite ifa)

1. to yawn

Lala (South Africa)

Etymology

From Proto-Bantu *-kúa.

Verb

-fá

1. to die

Latvian

Noun

fa m (invariable)

1. (music) fa, the fourth diatonic (or sixth chromatic) note 'F'.

Luganda

Etymology

From Proto-Bantu *-kúa.

Verb

fa

1. to die

Mandarin

Romanization

fa (fa⁵／fa⁰, Zhuyin ˙ㄈㄚ)

1. Hanyu Pinyin reading of 𠲎

Romanization

fa

1. Nonstandard spelling of fā.
2. Nonstandard spelling of fá.
3. Nonstandard spelling of fǎ.
4. Nonstandard spelling of fà.

Usage notes

• Transcriptions of Mandarin into the Latin script often do not distinguish between the critical tonal differences employed in the Mandarin language, using words such as this one without indication of tone.

Manx

Etymology

From Old Irish fáth, from Proto-Celtic *wātus (“inspired utterance”) (compare Welsh gwawd (“song, praise, poetry”)), from Proto-Indo-European *weh₂t-.

Noun

fa m (genitive singular , plural )

1. reason, cause

Synonyms

• oyr

Derived terms

• cre'n fa
• gyn fa gyn oyr

Mutation

Middle English

Etymology 1

From the oblique stem of Old English ġefāh.

Noun

fa (plural fas)

1. Alternative form of fo

Etymology 2

From Old English fā, variant of fāh.

Adjective

fa

1. Alternative form of fo

Neapolitan

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /fa/
• Rhymes: -a

Verb

fa

1. third-person singular present indicative of fà

Niuean

Etymology

From Proto-Polynesian *fa, from Proto-Oceanic *pat, from Proto-Eastern Malayo-Polynesian *pat, from Proto-Central-Eastern Malayo-Polynesian *pat, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *əpat, from Proto-Austronesian *Səpat.

Numeral

fa

1. four

Norman

Etymology

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

Pronunciation

• Audio (Jersey)

  (file)

Noun

fa m (plural fas)

1. (Jersey) suit (clothing)

Synonyms

• suit

Northern Ndebele

Etymology

From Proto-Bantu *-kúa.

Verb

-fá

1. to die

Inflection

This verb needs an inflection-table template.

Norwegian Nynorsk

Etymology

From Latin famuli, from the first word of the fourth line of Ut queant laxis, the medieval hymn on which solfège was based because its lines started on each note of the scale successively. Through Italian.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /fɑː/

Noun

fa m (definite singular fa-en, indefinite plural fa-ar, definite plural fa-ane)

2. (music) fa, a syllable used in solfège to represent the fourth diatonic (or sixth chromatic) note of a major scale.

Coordinate terms

• (scale of solfège): do, re, mi, fa, sol or so, la, ti, do

References

• “fa” in The Nynorsk Dictionary.

Old Frisian

Etymology

From Proto-West Germanic *fą̄han, from Proto-Germanic *fanhaną. Cognates include Old English fōn, Old Saxon fāhan and Old Dutch fān.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈfaː/

Verb

fā

1. (transitive) to catch

Descendants

• Saterland Frisian: fange
• West Frisian: fange

References

• Bremmer, Rolf H. (2009) An Introduction to Old Frisian: History, Grammar, Reader, Glossary, Amsterdam: John Benjamins Publishing Company, →ISBN

Old Irish

Alternative forms

• fá, ba, bá

Etymology

Apparently a derivative of some form of the copula is that is from Proto-Indo-European *bʰuH-.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key):

Conjunction

fa (triggers lenition)

1. (in indirect interrogative clauses) or
   • c. 800, Würzburg Glosses on the Pauline Epistles, published in Thesaurus Palaeohibernicus (reprinted 1987, Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies), edited and with translations by Whitley Stokes and John Strachan, vol. I, pp. 499–712, Wb. 23^b32

     imba bás ba bethu

     whether it be death or life

   • c. 800–825, Diarmait, Milan Glosses on the Psalms, published in Thesaurus Palaeohibernicus (reprinted 1987, Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies), edited and with translations by Whitley Stokes and John Strachan, vol. I, pp. 7–483, Ml. 90^c19

     Ní fetar indam·ṡoírfad Día fa nacc.

     I do not know whether God would deliver me or not.

   • c. 800–825, Diarmait, Milan Glosses on the Psalms, published in Thesaurus Palaeohibernicus (reprinted 1987, Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies), edited and with translations by Whitley Stokes and John Strachan, vol. I, pp. 7–483, Ml. 91^c1

     No scrútain-se, in tan no mbíinn isnaib fochaidib, dús in retarscar cairde ṅDǽ ⁊ a remcaissiu, ⁊ ní tucus-sa insin, in ru·etarscar fa naic.

     I used to consider, when I was in the tribulations, whether the covenant of God and his providence had departed, and I didn't understand whether it had departed or not.

   • c. 845, St Gall Glosses on Priscian, published in Thesaurus Palaeohibernicus (reprinted 1975, Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies), edited and with translations by Whitley Stokes and John Strachan, vol. II, pp. 49–224, Sg. 12^b7

     cosmail leiss cacha orr im cara fá æscare

     alike to him whichever he may slay, whether friend or foe

Further reading

• G. Toner, M. Ní Mhaonaigh, S. Arbuthnot, D. Wodtko, M.-L. Theuerkauf, editors (2019), “1 fa, ba, fo”, in eDIL: Electronic Dictionary of the Irish Language

Old Swedish

Etymology

From Old Norse fá, from Proto-Germanic *fanhaną.

Verb

fā

1. to seize, take
2. to get, receive

Conjugation

Descendants

• Swedish: få

Phuthi

Etymology

From Proto-Bantu *-kúa.

Verb

-fá

1. to die

Inflection

This verb needs an inflection-table template.

Scots

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /fa/

Pronoun

fa

1. Doric form of wha (“who”)

   Fa's this quine, en?

   Who's this girl, then?

Shona

Etymology

From Proto-Bantu *-kúa.

Verb

-fá (infinitive kufá)

1. to die

Derived terms

• rufu

Sotho

Etymology

From Proto-Bantu *-páa.

Verb

fa

1. to give

South Marquesan

Etymology

From Proto-Polynesian *fa, from Proto-Oceanic *pat, from Proto-Eastern Malayo-Polynesian *pat, from Proto-Central-Eastern Malayo-Polynesian *pat, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *əpat, from Proto-Austronesian *Səpat.

Numeral

fa

1. four

Southern Ndebele

Etymology

From Proto-Bantu *-kúa.

Verb

-fá

1. to die

Inflection

This verb needs an inflection-table template.

Spanish

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈfa/
• Rhymes: -a
• Syllabification: fa

Noun

fa m (plural fa)

1. fa (fourth diatonic (or sixth chromatic) musical note)

Derived terms

Interjection

fa

1. (Argentina) ew, phew (expression of disgust)

   Synonyms: puaj, guácala

Further reading

• “fa”, in Diccionario de la lengua española, Vigésima tercera edición, Real Academia Española, 2014

Sranan Tongo

Etymology 1

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

Adverb

fa

1. how

Derived terms

Conjunction

fa

1. as soon as

Etymology 2

Short for a phrase such as fa fu yu? or fa a e go?

Interjection

fa?

1. hi; how are you?; how's it going?

Swahili

Etymology

From Proto-Bantu *-kúa.

Pronunciation

• Audio (Kenya)

  (file)

Verb

-fa (infinitive kufa)

1. to die

   Synonyms: see Thesaurus:fa

2. to stop, come to an end

Conjugation

Derived terms

• Verbal derivations:
  • Applicative: -fia
  • Causative: -fisha (“murder”)
  • Passive: -fiwa (“mourn, be bereaved”)

• Nominal derivations:
  • kifa (“death”)
  • mafa (“cemetery”)

Related terms

• -fu (“dead”)
• kifo (“death”)
• mfu (“dead person”)
• ufu (“death”)

See also

• -ua (“kill”)

Swazi

Etymology

From Proto-Bantu *-kúa.

Verb

-fá

1. (intransitive) to die

Inflection

This verb needs an inflection-table template.

Tarifit

Etymology

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

Pronunciation

This entry needs pronunciation information. If you are familiar with the IPA then please add some!

Verb

fa (Tifinagh spelling ⴼⴰ)

1. (intransitive) to yawn

Conjugation

This verb needs an inflection-table template.

Tsonga

Etymology

From Proto-Bantu *-kúa.

Verb

fa

1. to die

Turkish

Etymology

From Italian fa

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /fa/

Noun

fa (definite accusative fayı, plural falar)

2. (music) fa (fourth diatonic (or sixth chromatic) musical note)
3. F (musical note or key)

Tuvaluan

Etymology

From Proto-Polynesian *fa, from Proto-Oceanic *pat, from Proto-Eastern Malayo-Polynesian *pat, from Proto-Central-Eastern Malayo-Polynesian *pat, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *əpat, from Proto-Austronesian *Səpat.

Numeral

fa

1. four

Venda

Etymology

From Proto-Bantu *-kúa.

Verb

fa

1. to die

Venetian

Noun

fa m (invariable)

1. (music) fa (fourth diatonic (or sixth chromatic) musical note)
2. F (musical note or key)

Adverb

fa

1. as, like

Volapük

Preposition

fa

1. by (indicating an agent)

West Makian

Conjunction

fa

1. or

   win edeng fa iunge ― two days or three

References

• Clemens Voorhoeve (1982) The Makian languages and their neighbours‎, Pacific linguistics

Wuvulu-Aua

Etymology

From Proto-Oceanic *pat, from Proto-Eastern Malayo-Polynesian *pat, from Proto-Central-Eastern Malayo-Polynesian *əpat, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *əpat, from Proto-Austronesian *Səpat.

Numeral

fa

1. four

Xhosa

Etymology

From Proto-Bantu *-kúa.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key):

Verb

-fá

1. (intransitive) to die

Inflection

This verb needs an inflection-table template.

Derived terms

• umfi

Yoruba

Etymology 1

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /fà/

Verb

fà

1. (transitive, intransitive) to pull

   mo fa aṣọ ― I pulled the clothes

2. (transitive) to suck
3. (intransitive) to subside, to reduce

   eéwó t'ó wú ti fà ― The boil that was swollen has reduced

4. to draw, to sketch

   ó fa ìlà sórí ìwé ― He drew a line on the piece of paper

5. to become sluggish

   ọ̀lẹ́ fà tìì lẹ́nu iṣẹ́ ― The lazy person was sluggish at work

6. to be elastic, to be mucilaginous (as a soup or stew), to draw

   Synonym: yọ̀

   ọbẹ̀ ewédú náàá fà ― This ewedu soup is mucilaginous

7. (intransitive) to crawl

   bí ìgbín fà, ìkarahun á tẹ̀lé e ― When the snail crawls its shell shall follow it

8. (transitive) to cause, to bring about

   ìyà púpọ̀ ni ó fa ẹkún ― Too much suffering is the cause of weeping

9. (transitive) to long for

   ọkàn àwọn ọmọ́ fà mí ― I longed for those children

Usage notes

• fa before a direct object

Derived terms

Etymology 2

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /fá/

Verb

fá

1. (transitive) to scrape or wipe off

   alápatàá fá awọ náà ― The butcher wiped off the skin

2. (transitive) to shave

   mo fá irun abíyá ― I shaved my armpit hair

Derived terms

Zulu

Etymology

From Proto-Bantu *-kúa.

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /fá/

Verb

-fá

1. (intransitive) to die

Inflection