al·pha

[al-fuh]
noun
1.
the first letter of the greek alphabet (A, α).
2.
the vowel sound represented by this letter.
3.
the first; beginning.
4.
( initial capital letter ) Astronomy. used to designate the brightest star in a constellation.
5.
Chemistry. one of two or more isomeric compounds.
6.
the first in a series of related items: frequently used in chemistry and physics.
7.
Chiefly British. a mark or grade corresponding to an A. Compare beta ( def 8 ), gamma ( def 9 ).
adjective
8.
a.
(of an animal) having the highest rank in a dominance hierarchy: the alpha female of an elephant pack.
b.
being the most dominant, powerful, or assertive person in a particular group.
See also alpha male.
9.
alphabetical: Put the files in alpha order.
10.
Chemistry. pertaining or linked to the carbon atom closest to a particular group in an organic molecule.
00:10
Alpha is always a great word to know.
So is gobo. Does it mean:
a stew of meat, vegetables, potatoes, etc.
a screen or mat covered with a dark material for shielding a camera lens from excess light or glare.
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Origin:
< Latin < Greek álpha < Semitic; cf. aleph

Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Collins
World English Dictionary
alpha (ˈælfə) [Click for IPA pronunciation guide]
 
—n
1.  the first letter in the Greek alphabet (Α, α), a vowel transliterated as a
2.  (Brit) the highest grade or mark, as in an examination
3.  (modifier)
 a.  involving or relating to helium-4 nuclei: an alpha particle
 b.  relating to one of two or more allotropes or crystal structures of a solid: alpha iron
 c.  relating to one of two or more isomeric forms of a chemical compound, esp one in which a group is attached to the carbon atom to which the principal group is attached
4.  (modifier) denoting the dominant person or animal in a group: the alpha male
 
[via Latin from Greek, of Phoenician origin; related to Hebrew āleph, literally: ox]

Alpha (ˈælfə) [Click for IPA pronunciation guide]
 
—n
1.  (foll by the genitive case of a specified constellation) usually the brightest star in a constellation: Alpha Centauri
2.  communications a code word for the letter a

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline
Word Origin & History

alpha
from L. alpha, from Gk. alpha, from Heb. or Phoen. aleph (q.v.). The Greeks added -a because Gk. words cannot end in most consonants. Sense of "beginning of anything" is from late 14c.; that of "first in a sequence" is from 1620s. Alpha male was in use by c.1960 among scientists
studying animals; applied to humans in society from c.1992.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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American Heritage
Medical Dictionary

alpha al·pha (āl'fə)
n.


  1. Symbol α The first letter of the greek alphabet.

  2. The first one in a series; the beginning.

  3. The first position from a designated carbon atom in an organic molecule at which an atom or radical group may be substituted.

adj.

  1. Characterizing the atom or radical group that is closest to the functional group of atoms in an organic molecule.

  2. Relating to one of two or more closely related substances, as in stereoisomers.

  3. Relating to or characterizing a polypeptide chain that is one of five types of heavy chains present in immunoglobins.

The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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FOLDOC
Computing Dictionary

ALPHA definition

language
(Or "Input") An extension of ALGOL 60 for the M-20 computer developed by A.P. Ershov at Novosibirsk in 1961. ALPHA includes matrix operations, slices, and complex arithmetic.
["The Alpha Automatic Programming System", A.P. Ershov ed., A-P 1971].
(1995-05-10)

Alpha definition


1. A compiler generator written by Andreas Koschinsky koschins@cs.tu-berlin.de and described in his thesis at the Technische Universitaet Berlin. Alpha takes an attribute grammar and uses Bison and Flex to generate a parser, a scanner and an ASE evaluator (Jazayeri and Walter).
The documentation is in german.
(1993-02-16)
2. DEC Alpha.
(1995-05-10)

The Free On-line Dictionary of Computing, © Denis Howe 2010 http://foldoc.org
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American Heritage
Abbreviations & Acronyms
alpha
alphabetical
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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Example sentences
Residual risk, also known as alpha, is what is left after you take out all the other shared risk exposures.
With a hydrogen alpha solar telescope, you can observe prominences and filaments in the chromosphere.
She may respond to a request to play but always needs to be the alpha.
Wolf packs are supposedly despotic hierarchies dominated by alpha wolves.
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