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alack

 - 3 dictionary results

a⋅lack

  [uh-lak]
Use alack in a Sentence
–interjection Archaic.
(used as an exclamation of sorrow, regret, or dismay.)
Also, a⋅lack⋅a⋅day  [uh-lak-uh-dey] .

Origin:
presumably ah + lack. Cf. aha, ahem, alas
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To alack
a·lack   (ə-lāk')   
interj.  Used to express sorrow, regret, or alarm: "'Las and fearful alack—nobody can make such high claims for the people then living in Maine" (John Gould).

[On the model of alas; see lack.]
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

alack 
1480, from ah, lack, from lack (q.v.) in M.E. sense of "loss, failure, reproach, shame." Originally an expression of dissatisfaction, later of regret or surprise.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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