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Synonyms

beginning, first, start,

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Alpha - 8 dictionary results

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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

a.	(esp. of animals) having the highest rank of its sex in a dominance hierarchy: the alpha female.

b.	being the most prominent, talented, or aggressive person in a group: the alpha male of investment bankers.

9.	Chemistry. pertaining or linked to the carbon atom closest to a particular group in an organic molecule.

Origin:
< L < Gk álpha < Sem; cf. aleph

Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
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al·pha (āl'fə) Pronunciation Key
n.

The first letter of the Greek alphabet. See Table at alphabet.
The first one; the beginning.
Chemistry The first position from a designated carbon atom in an organic molecule at which an atom or radical may be substituted.
Astronomy The brightest or main star in a constellation.
The mathematical estimate of the return on a security when the return on the market as a whole is zero. Alpha is derived from a in the formula R_i = a + bR_m, which measures the return on a security (R_i) for a given return on the market (R_m) where b is beta.

adj.

Being the highest ranked or most dominant individual of one's sex. Used of social animals: the alpha female of the wolf pack.
Chemistry Closest to the functional group of atoms in an organic molecule.
Alphabetical.

[Greek, of Phoenician origin; see lp in Semitic roots.]

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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alpha
adjective
1.	first in order of importance; "the alpha male in the group of chimpanzees"; "the alpha star in a constellation is the brightest or main star"
2.	early testing stage of a software or hardware product; "alpha version"
noun
1.	the 1st letter of the Greek alphabet
2.	the beginning of a series or sequence; "the Alpha and Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end"--Revelations

WordNet® 3.0, © 2006 by Princeton University.
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ALPHA 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
1. A compiler generator written by Andreas Koschinsky 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, © 1993-2007 Denis Howe
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Alpha, IL (village, FIPS 971) Location: 41.19217 N, 90.38082 W
Population (1990): 753 (324 housing units)
Area: 0.8 sq km (land), 0.0 sq km (water)
Zip code(s): 61413

Alpha, KY Zip code(s): 42603

Alpha, MN (city, FIPS 1162) Location: 43.63919 N, 94.87138 W
Population (1990): 105 (58 housing units)
Area: 0.5 sq km (land), 0.0 sq km (water)
Zip code(s): 56111

Alpha, NJ (borough, FIPS 1030) Location: 40.65975 N, 75.15746 W
Population (1990): 2530 (1003 housing units)
Area: 4.4 sq km (land), 0.1 sq km (water)
Zip code(s): 08865

Alpha, MI (village, FIPS 1800) Location: 46.04394 N, 88.37826 W
Population (1990): 219 (130 housing units)
Area: 2.4 sq km (land), 0.1 sq km (water)

U.S. Gazetteer, U.S. Census Bureau
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Alpha

A\ (named [=a] in the English, and most commonly ["a] in other languages). The first letter of the English and of many other alphabets. The capital A of the alphabets of Middle and Western Europe, as also the small letter (a), besides the forms in Italic, black letter, etc., are all descended from the old Latin A, which was borrowed from the Greek Alpha, of the same form; and this was made from the first letter (?) of the Ph[oe]nician alphabet, the equivalent of the Hebrew Aleph, and itself from the Egyptian origin. The Aleph was a consonant letter, with a guttural breath sound that was not an element of Greek articulation; and the Greeks took it to represent their vowel Alpha with the ["a] sound, the Ph[oe]nician alphabet having no vowel symbols. This letter, in English, is used for several different vowel sounds. See Guide to pronunciation, [sect][sect] 43-74. The regular long a, as in fate, etc., is a comparatively modern sound, and has taken the place of what, till about the early part of the 17th century, was a sound of the quality of ["a] (as in far).

2. (Mus.) The name of the sixth tone in the model major scale (that in C), or the first tone of the minor scale, which is named after it the scale in A minor. The second string of the violin is tuned to the A in the treble staff. -- A sharp (A[sharp]) is the name of a musical tone intermediate between A and B. -- A flat (A[flat]) is the name of a tone intermediate between A and G.

A per se (L. per se by itself), one pre["e]minent; a nonesuch. [Obs.]

O fair Creseide, the flower and A per se Of Troy and Greece. --Chaucer.

alpha
alphabetical