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Ale

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ale

[eyl]
–noun
1. a malt beverage, darker, heavier, and more bitter than beer, containing about 6 percent alcohol by volume.
2. British. beer.

Origin:
bef. 950; ME; OE (e)alu (gen. ealoth); c. OS alo-, MD ale, ael, ON ǫl; Lith alùs, OCS olŭ; Finnish, Estonian olut; areal word of North Europe

A.L.E.

Insurance.
additional living expense.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To Ale
ale   (āl)   
n.  
  1. A fermented alcoholic beverage containing malt and hops, similar to but heavier than beer.

  2. A serving of this beverage.


[Middle English, from Old English ealu, alu; see alu- in Indo-European roots.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

ale 
O.E. ealu "ale, beer," from P.Gmc. *aluth- (cf. O.S. alo, O.N. öl), perhaps from PIE root meaning "bitter" (cf. L. alumen "alum"), or from PIE *alu-t "ale," from base *alu-, a word with connotations of "sorcery, magic, possession, intoxication." The word was borrowed from Gmc. into Lith. (alus) and O.C.S. (olu). Ale and beer were synonymous until growing of hops began in England early 15c.
"[A]t present 'beer' is in the trade the generic name for all malt liquor
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Abbreviations & Acronyms
ALE
additional living expense
The American Heritage® Abbreviations Dictionary, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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