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A

 - 75 dictionary results
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A, a

  [ey]
Use A in a Sentence
–noun, plural A's or As, a's or as.
1. the first letter of the English alphabet, a vowel.
2. any spoken sound represented by the letter A or a, as in bake, hat, father, or small.
3. something having the shape of an A.
4. a written or printed representation of the letter A or a.
5. a device, as a printer's type, for reproducing the letter A or a.
—Idioms
6. from A to Z, from beginning to end; thoroughly; completely: He knows the Bible from A to Z.
7. not know from A to B, to know nothing; be ignorant.
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a

1  [uh; when stressed ey]
–indefinite article
1. not any particular or certain one of a class or group: a man; a chemical; a house.
2. a certain; a particular: one at a time; two of a kind; A Miss Johnson called.
3. another; one typically resembling: a Cicero in eloquence; a Jonah.
4. one (used before plural nouns that are preceded by a quantifier singular in form): a hundred men (compare hundreds of men); a dozen times (compare dozens of times).
5. indefinitely or nonspecifically (used with adjectives expressing number): a great many years; a few stars.
6. one (used before a noun expressing quantity): a yard of ribbon; a score of times.
7. any; a single: not a one.
Origin:
ME; orig. preconsonantal phonetic var. of an 1

Usage note:
In both spoken and written English the choice of a1 or an 1 is determined by the initial sound of the word that follows. Before a consonant sound, a is used; before a vowel sound, an: a book, a rose; an apple, an opera. Problems arise occasionally when the following word begins with a vowel letter but actually starts with a consonant sound, or vice versa. Some words beginning with the vowel letter u and all words beginning with the vowel letters eu are pronounced with a beginning consonant sound, as if the first letter were y: a union; a European. Some other spellings that begin with a vowel letter may also stand for an initial consonant sound: a ewe; a ewer. The words one and once and all compounds of which they are the first element begin with a w sound: a one-room apartment; a once-famous actor.
The names of the consonant letters f, h, l, m, n, r, s, and x are pronounced with a beginning vowel sound. When these letters are used as words or to form words, they are preceded by an: to rent an L-shaped studio; to fly an SST. The names of the vowel letter u and the semivowel letters w and y are pronounced with a beginning consonant sound. When used as words, they are preceded by a: a U-turn; The plumber installed a Y in the line.
In some words beginning with the letter h, the h is not pronounced; the words actually begin with a vowel sound: an hour; an honor. When the h is strongly pronounced, as in a stressed syllable at the beginning of a word, it is preceded by a: a history of the Sioux; a hero sandwich. (In former times an was used before strongly pronounced h in a stressed first syllable: an hundred.) Such adjectives as historic, historical, heroic, and habitual, which begin with an unstressed syllable and often with a silent or weakly pronounced h, are commonly preceded by an, especially in British English. But the use of a rather than an is widespread in both speech and writing: a historical novel; a habitual criminal. Hotel and unique are occasionally preceded by an, but this use is increasingly old-fashioned. Although in some dialects an has yielded to a in all cases, edited writing reflects usage as described above.

a

2  [uh; when stressed ey]
–preposition
each; every; per: ten cents a sheet; three times a day.
Origin:
orig. ME a, preconsonantal var. of on (see a- 1 ); confused with a 1

a

3  [uh]
–preposition
Pronunciation Spelling. a reduced, unstressed form of of (often written as part of a single, unhyphenated word): cloth a gold; time a day; kinda; sorta.
Origin:
ME; unstressed preconsonantal var. of of 1

a

4  [uh]
–auxiliary verb Pronunciation Spelling.
a reduced, unstressed form of auxiliary have following some modals, as might, should, could, would, and must (usually written as part of a single, unhyphenated word): We shoulda gone.
Compare of 2

Origin:
ME; phonetic var. of have

a

5  [uh, a, ah]
–pronoun British Dialect.
1. he.
2. she.
3. it.
4. they.
5. I.
Origin:
ME a, ha

a'

  [ah, aw]
–adjective
Scot. all: for a' that.
Also, a.

A

 
1. Electricity. ampere; amperes.
2. Physics. angstrom.
3. answer.
4. British. arterial (used with a road number to designate a major highway): Take the A525 to Ruthin.

A

 
Symbol.
1. the first in order or in a series.
2. (sometimes lowercase) (in some grading systems) a grade or mark, as in school or college, indicating the quality of a student's work as excellent or superior.
3. (sometimes lowercase) (in some school systems) a symbol designating the first semester of a school year.
4. Music.
a. the sixth tone in the scale of C major or the first tone in the relative minor scale, A minor.
b. a string, key, or pipe tuned to this tone.
c. a written or printed note representing this tone.
d. (in the fixed system of solmization) the sixth tone of the scale of C major, called la.
e. the tonality having A as the tonic note.
5. Physiology. a major blood group, usually enabling a person whose blood is of this type to donate blood to persons of group A or AB and to receive blood from persons of O or A. Compare ABO system.
6. (sometimes lowercase) the medieval Roman numeral for 50 or 500. Compare Roman numerals.
7. Chemistry. (formerly) argon.
8. Chemistry, Physics. mass number.
9. Biochemistry.
a. adenine.
b. alanine.
10. Logic. universal affirmative.
11. British. a designation for a motion picture recommended as suitable for adults. Compare AA (def. 5), U (def. 5), X (def. 9).
12. a proportional shoe width size, narrower than B and wider than AA.
13. a proportional brassiere cup size, smaller than B and larger than AA.
14. a quality rating for a corporate or municipal bond, lower than AA and higher than BBB.

a

 
Measurements.
are; ares.

a

 
Symbol, Logic.
universal affirmative.

Å

 
Symbol, Physics.
angstrom.

A-

 
atomic (used in combination): A-bomb; A-plant.

a-

1 
a reduced form of the Old English preposition on, meaning “on,” “in,” “into,” “to,” “toward,” preserved before a noun in a prepositional phrase, forming a predicate adjective or an adverbial element (afoot; abed; ashore; aside; away), or before an adjective (afar; aloud; alow), as a moribund prefix with a verb (acknowledge), and in archaic and dialectal use before a present participle in -ing (set the bells aringing); and added to a verb stem with the force of a present participle (ablaze; agape; aglow; astride; and originally, awry).
Origin:
ME, late OE; cf. a 2 , nowadays

a-

2 
a reduced form of the Old English preposition of: akin; afresh; anew.
Origin:
ME; see a 3

a-

3 
an old point-action prefix, not referring to an act as a whole, but only to the beginning or end: She arose (rose up). They abided by their beliefs (remained faithful to the end).
Origin:
ME; OE a- (unstressed), ǣ-, ā-, ō- (stressed; see abb, woof 1 , oakum ), rarely or- (see ordeal ) ≪ Gmc *uz- < unstressed IE *uss- < *ud-s, akin to out; in some cases confused with a- 4 , as in abridge

a-

4 
var. of ab- before p and v: aperient; avert.
Origin:
ME < L ā-, a- (var. of ab- ab- ); in some words < F a- < L ab-, as in abridge

a-

5 
var. of ad-, used: (1) before sc, sp, st (ascend) and (2) in words of French derivation (often with the sense of increase, addition): amass.
Origin:
ME, in some words < MF a- < L ad- prefix or ad prep. (see ad- ), as in abut; in others < L a- (var. of ad- ad- ), as in ascend

a-

6 
var. of an- 1 before a consonant, meaning “not,” “without”: amoral; atonal; achromatic.

-a

1 
a plural ending of nouns borrowed from Greek and Latin: phenomena; criteria; data; errata; genera.

-a

2 
a feminine singular ending of nouns borrowed from Latin and Greek, also used in Neo-Latin coinages to Latinize bases of any origin, and as a Latin substitute for the feminine ending -ē of Greek words: anabaena; cinchona; pachysandra.

-a

3 
an ending of personal names forming feminines from masculines: Georgia; Roberta.
Origin:
< L fem. -a (see -a 2 ), as Claudia, fem. of Claudius

-a

4 
a suffix designating the oxide of the chemical element denoted by the stem: alumina; ceria; thoria.
Origin:
prob. generalized from the -a of magnesia

A.

 
1. Absolute.
2. Academy.
3. acre; acres.
4. America.
5. American.
6. angstrom.
7. year. Origin:
< L annō, abl. of annus
8. answer.
9. before. Origin:
< L ante
10. April.
11. Artillery.

a.

 
1. about.
2. acre; acres.
3. active.
4. adjective.
5. alto.
6. ampere; amperes.
7. year. Origin:
< L annō, abl. of annus
8. anonymous.
9. answer.
10. before. Origin:
< L ante
11. are; ares.
12. Baseball. assist; assists.

ab-

 
a formal element occurring in loanwords from Latin, where it meant “away from”: abdicate; abolition.
Also, a-, abs-.

Origin:
< L ab (prep. and prefix) from, away, c. Gk apó, Skt ápa, G ab, E of 1 , off

am⋅pere

  [am-peer, am-peer]
–noun Electricity.
the base SI unit of electrical current, equivalent to one coulomb per second, formally defined to be the constant current which if maintained in two straight parallel conductors of infinite length, of negligible circular cross section, and placed one meter apart in vacuum, would produce between these conductors a force equal to 2 × 10−7 newton per meter of length. Abbreviation: A, amp.
Also, ampère.

Origin:
1881; named after A. M. Ampère

an-

1 
a prefix occurring before stems beginning with a vowel or h in loanwords from Greek, where it means “not,” “without,” “lacking” (anarchy; anecdote); used in the formation of compound words: anelectric.
Also, before a consonant, a-.

Origin:
< Gk. See a- 6 , in- 3 , un- 1

ang⋅strom

  [ang-struhm]
–noun (often initial capital letter)
a unit of length, equal to one tenth of a millimicron, or one ten millionth of a millimeter, primarily used to express electromagnetic wavelengths. Symbol: Å; Abbreviation: A
Also called angstrom unit, Angstrom unit.

Origin:
1895–1900; named after A. J. Ångström

are

2  [air, ahr]
–noun
a surface measure equal to 100 square meters, or 119.6 square yards; 1/100 of a hectare. Abbreviation: a
Origin:
1810–20; < F < L ārea. See area

Bron⋅zi⋅no

  [brawn-dzee-naw]
–noun
A⋅gno⋅lo (di Co⋅si⋅mo di Ma⋅ria⋅no)  [ah-nyaw-law dee kaw-zee-maw dee mah-ryah-naw] , 1502–72, Italian painter.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To A
a 1 or A   (ā)   
n.   pl. a's or A's also as or As

  1. The first letter of the modern English alphabet.

  2. Any of the speech sounds represented by the letter a.

  3. The first in a series.

  4. Something shaped like the letter A.

  5. A The best or highest in quality or rank: grade A milk.

  6. Music

    1. The sixth tone in the scale of C major or the first tone in the relative minor scale.

    2. A key or scale in which A is the tonic.

    3. A written or printed note representing this tone.

    4. A string, key, or pipe tuned to the pitch of this tone.

  7. A One of the four major blood groups in the ABO system. Individuals with this blood group have the A antigen on the surface of their red blood cells, and the anti-B antibody in their blood serum.

a 2   (ə; ā when stressed)   
indef.art.  

  1. Used before nouns and noun phrases that denote a single but unspecified person or thing: a region; a person.

  2. Used before terms, such as few or many, that denote number, amount, quantity, or degree: only a few of the voters; a bit more rest; a little excited.

    1. Used before a proper name to denote a type or a member of a class: the wisdom of a Socrates.

    2. Used before a mass noun to indicate a single type or example: a dry wine.

  4. The same: birds of a feather.

  5. Any: not a drop to drink.


[Middle English, variant of an, an; see an1.]
Usage Note: In writing, the form a is used before a word beginning with a consonant sound, regardless of its spelling (a frog, a university). The form an is used before a word beginning with a vowel sound (an orange, an hour). · An was once a common variant before words beginning with h in which the first syllable was unstressed; thus 18th-century authors wrote either a historical or an historical but a history, not an history. This usage made sense in that people often did not pronounce the initial h in words such as historical and heroic, but by the late 19th century educated speakers usually pronounced initial h, and the practice of writing an before such words began to die out. Nowadays it survives primarily before the word historical. One may also come across it in the phrases an hysterectomy or an hereditary trait. These usages are acceptable in formal writing.
a 3   (ə)   
prep.  In every; to each; per: once a month; one dollar a pound.

[Middle English, from Old English an, in; see on.]
a 4   (ə)   
aux.v.   Informal
Have: He'd a come if he could.

[Middle English, alteration of haven, to have; see have.]
a 5  
abbr.  

  1. acceleration

  2. are (measurement)

A  
abbr.  

  1. accusative

  2. Games ace

  3. across

  4. adenine

  5. alto

  6. ampere

  7. or Å angstrom

  8. area

ac·cel·er·a·tion   (āk-sěl'ə-rā'shən)   
n.  

    1. The act of accelerating.

    2. The process of being accelerated.

  2. Abbr. a Physics The rate of change of velocity with respect to time.

ad·e·nine   (ād'n-ēn', -ĭn)   
n.   Abbr. A
A purine base, C5H5N5, that is the constituent involved in base pairing with thymine in DNA and with uracil in RNA.
al·to   (āl'tō)   
n.   pl. al·tos

  1. A low female singing voice; a contralto.

  2. A countertenor.

    1. The range between soprano and tenor.

    2. A singer whose voice lies within this range.

    3. An instrument that sounds within this range.

    4. Abbr. A A vocal or instrumental part written in this range.


[Italian, from Latin altus, high; see al-2 in Indo-European roots.]
am·pere   (ām'pîr')   
n.   Abbr. A

  1. A unit of electric current in the meter-kilogram-second system. It is the steady current that when flowing in straight parallel wires of infinite length and negligible cross section, separated by a distance of one meter in free space, produces a force between the wires of 2 × 10-7 newtons per meter of length.

  2. A unit in the International System specified as one International coulomb per second and equal to 0.999835 ampere. See Table at measurement.


[After André Marie Ampère.]
ang·strom or ång·strom   (āng'strəm)   
n.   Abbr. A or Å or angst
A unit of length equal to one hundred-millionth (10-8) of a centimeter, used especially to specify radiation wavelengths. Also called angstrom unit. See Table at measurement.

[After Anders Jonas Ångström.]
are 2   (âr, är)   
n.   Abbr. a
A metric unit of area equal to 100 square meters (119.6 square yards).

[French, from Latin ārea, open space; see area.]
ar·e·a   (âr'ē-ə)   


(click for larger image in new window)
n.  

  1. A roughly bounded part of the space on a surface; a region: a farming area; the New York area.

  2. A surface, especially an open, unoccupied piece of ground: a landing area; a playing area.

  3. A distinct part or section, as of a building, set aside for a specific function: a storage area in the basement.

  4. A division of experience, activity, or knowledge; a field: studies in the area of finance; a job in the health-care area.

  5. An open, sunken space next to a building; an areaway.

  6. Abbr. A The extent of a planar region or of the surface of a solid measured in square units.

  7. Computer Science A section of storage set aside for a particular purpose.


[Latin ārea, open space; possibly akin to ārēre, to be dry; see arid.]
ar'e·al adj., ar'e·al·ly adv.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
Word Origin & History

a  (1)
indefinite article, c.1150, a variation of O.E. an (see an) in which the -n- began to disappear before consonants, a process mostly complete by 1340. The -n- also was retained before words beginning with a sounded -h- until c.1600; it still is retained by many writers before unaccented syllables in h- or (e)u-, but is now no longer normally spoken as such. The -n- also lingered (especially in southern England dialect) before -w- and -y- through 15c.

a  (2)
as in twice a day, etc., is from O.E. an "on," in this case "on each." The sense was extended from time to measure, price, place, etc. The habit of tacking a onto a gerund (as in a-hunting we will go) died out 18c.

ampere 
1881, "the current that one volt can send through one ohm," from Fr. ampère, from André M. Ampère (1775-1836), Fr. physicist. Shortened form amp is attested from 1886.

an- 
privative prefix, from Gk., "not, without," related to ne- and cognate with Skt. an-, L. in-, Goth., O.E. un-.

angstrom 
unit of length equal to one hundred millionth of a centimeter (used to measure wavelengths of light), 1892, named for Swed. physicist Anders Ångström (1814-74).

are  (n.)
square unit of 10 meters on each side, 1819, from Fr., formed 1795 by decree of the French National Convention, from L. area "vacant piece of ground" (see area).

a-  (3)
prefix meaning "not," from Gk. a-, an- "not," from PIE base *ne "not" (see un-).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Financial Dictionary

A

A Nasdaq stock symbol specifying that the stocks are Class "A" shares of the company.

Investopedia Commentary

Nasdaq-listed securities have four or five characters. If a fifth letter appears, it identifies the issue as other than a single issue of common stock or capital stock.

See also: Class, Nasdaq, Stock Symbol

Also spelled: a, A, A

Investopedia.com. Copyright © 1999-2005 - All rights reserved. Owned and Operated by Investopedia Inc.
Cite This Source
Financial Dictionary

a

  1. Used in the dividend column of stock transaction tables in newspapers to indicate a cash payment in addition to regular dividends during the year: 2.75a.

  2. Used in money market mutual fund transaction tables in newspapers to indicate a yield that may include capital gains and losses as well as current interest: AmCap Reserv a.



A

An upper-medium grade assigned to a debt obligation by a rating agency to indicate a strong capacity to pay interest and repay principal. This capacity is susceptible to impairment in the event of adverse developments.

Wall Street Words: An A to Z Guide to Investment Terms by David L. Scott.
Copyright © 2003. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
Cite This Source
Medical Dictionary

Main Entry: a
Function: abbreviation
1 about
2 absent
3 absolute
4 absorbency; absorbent
5 accommodation
6acetum
7 acid; acidity
8 actin
9 active; activity
10 allergist; allergy
11 alpha
12 anode
13 answer
14ante
15 anterior
16 aqua
17 area
18 artery
19 asymmetric; asymmetry

Main Entry: A
Function: abbreviation
1 adenine
2 ampere

Main Entry: Å
Function: symbol
angstrom

Main Entry: am·pere
Pronunciation: 'am-"pi(&)r also -"pe(&)r
Function: noun
1 : the practical mks unit of electric current thatis equivalent to a flow of one coulomb per second or to the steady current produced by one volt applied across a resistance of one ohm
2 : the base unit of electric current in theInternational System of Units that is equal to a constant current which when maintained in two straight parallel conductors of infinite length and negligible circular sections one meter apart in avacuum produces between the conductors a force equal to 2 × 10−7newton per meter of length
Amápère /än-per/,André Marie (1775–1836), French physicist. Ampère is credited with founding, naming, and developing the science of electrodynamics. He was the formulator of two lawsin electromagnetism relating magnetic fields to electric currents. The first person to develop techniques for measuring electricity, he invented an instrument that was a forerunner of the galvanometer.In 1881 at the suggestion of Sir Charles Bright, an international congress on electricity adopted ampere as a term for the standard unit of electric current.

Main Entry: ang·strom
Pronunciation: 'a[ng]-str&m also 'o[ng]-
Function: noun
: a unit of length equal to one ten-billionth of a meter
Ångström, Anders Jonas (1814–1874) Swedish astronomer and physicist. One of the early formulators of the science of modern spectroscopy, Ångströmwrote extensively on terrestrial magnetism, the conduction of heat, and especially spectroscopy. He published a monumental map of the normal solar spectrum that expressed the length of light waves inunits of one ten-millionth of a millimeter, a unit of length now known as the angstrom. He discovered that hydrogen is present in the sun's atmosphere, and he was the first to examine the spectrum ofthe aurora borealis.
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
Cite This Source
Medical Dictionary

a abbr.

  1. area

  2. asymmetrical

  3. specific absorption coefficient (often italic)

  4. systemic arterial blood (used as a subscript)

  5. total acidity

A abbr.

  1. absorbance (often italic)

  2. alveolar gas (used as a subscript)

  3. adenine

  4. ammeter

  5. AMP (in polynucleotides)

  6. ampere

  7. angstrom

  8. area

a- or an-
pref.
Without; not: acellular.

Å abbr.
angstrom

ab- 2
pref.
Used to indicate an electromagnetic unit in the centimeter-gram-second system: abcoulomb.

ampere am·pere (ām'pēr')
n.
Abbr. A

  1. A unit of electric current in the meter-kilogram-second system, equal to the current that, flowing in two parallel wires one meter apart, produces a force of 2 × 10-7 newtons per meter.

  2. A unit in the International System specified as one International coulomb per second and equal to 0.999835 ampere.

an- pref.
Variant of a-.

angstrom ang·strom or ång·strom (āng'strəm)
n.
Abbr. A, Å, angst
A unit of length equal to one hundred millionth (10-8) of a centimeter, used especially to specify radiation wavelengths.

The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Cite This Source
Science Dictionary
A  
Abbreviation of adenine, ampere, angstrom, area
Å  
Abbreviation of angstrom
a-  
A prefix meaning "without" or "not" when forming an adjective (such as amorphous, without form, or atypical, not typical), and "absence of" when forming a noun (such as arrhythmia, absence of rhythm). Before a vowel or h it becomes an- (as in anhydrous, anoxia).
Ampère   (ām'pîr', äm-pěr')  Pronunciation Key 
French mathematician and physicist who is best known for his analysis of the relationship between magnetic force and electric current. He formulated Ampère's law, which describes the strength of the magnetic field produced by the flow of energy through a conductor. The ampere unit of electric current is named for him.
Ångström   (āng'strəm)  Pronunciation Key 
Swedish physicist and astronomer who pioneered the use of the spectroscope in the analysis of radiation. By studying the spectrum of visible light given off by the Sun, Ångström discovered that there is hydrogen in the Sun's atmosphere. The angstrom unit of measurement is named for him.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2002. Published by Houghton Mifflin. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
Bible Dictionary

A

Alpha, the first letter of the Greek alphabet, as Omega is the last. These letters occur in the text of Rev. 1:8,11; 21:6; 22:13, and are represented by "Alpha" and "Omega" respectively (omitted in R.V., 1:11). They mean "the first and last." (Comp. Heb. 12:2; Isa. 41:4; 44:6; Rev. 1:11,17; 2:8.) In the symbols of the early Christian Church these two letters are frequently combined with the cross or with Christ's monogram to denote his divinity.

Easton's 1897 Bible Dictionary
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Abbreviations & Acronyms
a
absent
A

  1. accusative

  2. ace

  3. across

  4. adenine

  5. alto

  6. American Stock Exchange

  7. ammeter

  8. ampere

  9. angstrom

  10. area

  11. Asian (as in personal ads)

  12. Baseball assist

  13. Austria (international vehicle ID)

The American Heritage® Abbreviations Dictionary, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
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