a-

See also:A-,A−,-a,-a-,á-,ā-,а-,andAppendix:Variations of "a"

Languages (50)

Translingual•English

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A-Pucikwar•Catalan•Danish•Dutch•Esperanto•Fingallian•Finnish•Franco-Provençal•French•Galician•German•Hanunoo•Indonesian•Irish•Italian•Japhug•Latin•Latvian•Mohawk•Murui Huitoto•Navajo•Neapolitan•Northern Ndebele•Norwegian Bokmål•Norwegian Nynorsk•Old English•Old French•Old Irish•Old Javanese•Old Saxon•Phuthi•Polish•Portuguese•Sardinian•Scots•Serbo-Croatian•Southern Ndebele•Spanish•Swahili•Swazi•Tagal Murut•Tagalog•Tashelhit•Tooro•Welsh•Xhosa•Ye'kwana•Zulu

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Page categories

Translingual

Etymology

From theAncient Greekἀ-(a-,“not, without”).

Prefix

a-

1. Used to form taxonomic names indicating a lack of some feature that might be expected

Derived terms

Translingual terms prefixed with a-

English

Etymology 1

FromMiddle Englisha-(“up, out, away”),fromOld Englishā-,originally*ar-,*or-,fromProto-West Germanic*uʀ-,fromProto-Germanic*uz-(“out-”),fromProto-Indo-European*uds-(“up, out”).Cognate withOld Saxona-,Germaner-.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key):/ə/

• Audio(US):

  (file)

Prefix

a-

2. (no longerproductive)Forming verbs with the senseaway,up,on,out.

   arise,await

4. (no longerproductive)Forming verbs with the sense of intensified action.

   abide,amaze

Etymology 2

• FromMiddle Englisha-(“on”),derived from unstressedMiddle Englishan(“on”),fromOld Englishan(“on”).
• Seea(preposition,on, to, in, etc.)

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key):/ə/

• Audio(US):

  (file)

Prefix

a-

2. (rareor no longerproductive)In,on,at;used to show a state, condition, or manner. Also passing into sense 2.[First attested prior to 1150]

   aglow,apace,afire,aboil,a-bling,abluster

4. (no longerproductive)In, into. Also passing into sense 5.[First attested prior to 1150]

   asunder

6. In the direction of, ortoward.[First attested prior to 1150]

   astern,abeam

8. (archaicordialectal)At such a time.[First attested prior to 1150]

   Comea-morning we are going hunting.

10. (archaicordialectal)In the act or process of. Used in some dialects before a present participle.[First attested prior to 1150]

    hitsa-poppin

    doinsa-transpirin[doingsa-transpiring]

    • 1777,Thomas Arne,A-Hunting We Will Go:
    • 1780,The Twelve Days of Christmas:

      The twelfth day of Christmas,

      My true love sent to me

      Twelve lordsa-leaping,

      …

      Eight maidsa-milking,

      Seven swansa-swimming,

      Six geesea-laying,

    • circa1850,Here We Come A-wassailing/Here We Come A-caroling

      Here we comea-wassailing

      Among the leaves so green;

      Here we comea-wand’ring

      So fair to be seen.

    • 1939,Alfred Edward Housman,Additional Poems,XIII, lines 6-7:

      Oh waste no wordsa-wooing
      The soft sleep to your bed;

    • 1964,Bob Dylan,"The Times They Are a-Changin'"(recorded 1963, released 1964):

      The order is rapidly fadin'

      And the first one now will later be last

      For the times they area-changin'

    • circa1970,bumper sticker:

      If the van’sa-rockin’, don’t comea-knockin’.

Usage notes

Adjectives formed with this prefix are often restricted topredicativeuse, owing to their origin asprepositionalphrases with the preposition "on." For example, one may say "the ship isafire,"but not" theafireship, "just as one may say" the ship ison fire,"but not" theon fireship. "

Etymology 3

FromMiddle Englisha-,a variant form ofy-,fromOld Englishġe-,fromProto-West Germanic*ga-,fromProto-Germanic*ga-,fromProto-Indo-European*ḱóm(“with”).

Alternative forms

• i-

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key):/ə/

• Audio(US):

  (file)

Prefix

a-

2. Alternative form ofy-(archaicanddialectal)In dialect, it is sometimes conflated with sense 5 of the previous definition, and is used as a general indicator of a participle.[First attested around 1150 to 1350 (Middle English).]

   aware,alike

4. (Devon)Used to form the past participle of a verb.

   I havea-gone.

   I havea-seen a bird.

Etymology 4

FromAnglo-Normana-,fromOld Frenche-,fromLatinex-.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key):/ə/

• Audio(US):

  (file)

Prefix

a-

2. (no longerproductive)Forming words with the sense ofwholly,orutterlyout.[First attested from around 1150 to 1350.]

   abash

Etymology 5

FromAncient Greekἀ-(a-)(ἀν-(an-)immediately followed by a vowel).

Pronunciation

• (US,UK)IPA^(key):/eɪ/

• Audio(US):

  (file)

• (Philippines)IPA^(key):/ə/,/a/(not inatheist)

Prefix

a-

2. Not,without, opposite of.

   amoral,asymmetry,atheism,asexual,acyclic,atypical

   • 1948(revised 1952),Robert Graves,The White Goddess,Faber & Faber 1999, page 7:

     When invited to believe in the Chimaera, the horse-centaurs, or the winged horse Pegasus, all of them straightforward Pelasgian cult-symbols, a philosopher felt bound to reject them asa-zoölogical improbabilities [...].

   • 2012,Faramerz Dabhoiwala,The Origins of Sex,Penguin, published2013,page191:

     If aroused outside the proper outlet of marriage, [female lust] could range out of control, turning its possessor into ana-feminine monster: that is what happened to fallen women.

Usage notes

• This prefix is referred to asAlpha privative.
• Used with stems that begin with consonants except sometimesh.an-is synonymous and is used in front of words that start with vowels and sometimesh.For example,anestheticandanalgesic.

Synonyms

• (not):an-,dys-,i-/il-/im-/in-/ir-,mal-,non-,un-

Translations

not, without, opposite of

• Asturian:a-
• Catalan:a-(ca)
• Danish:-a
• Dutch:a-(nl)
• French:a-(fr)
• Galician:a-(gl)
• German:a-(de)
• Irish:a-
• Italian:a-(it)
• Latvian:a-
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål:a-(no)

  Nynorsk:a-

• Occitan:a-
• Polish:a-(pl)
• Portuguese:a-(pt)
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic:а-

  Roman:a-

• Spanish:a-(es),an-(es)

Etymology 6

FromMiddle Englisha-,fromMiddle Frencha-,fromLatinad(“towards”).

Prefix

a-

2. (no longerproductive)Towards; Used to indicate direction, reduction to, increase to, change into, or motion.[First attested from around 1150 to 1350.]

   ascend,aspire,amass,abandon,avenue

Usage notes

• Used on stems that started withsc,sp,orst,and also used on stems with a French origin.
• Used in place ofad-.

Etymology 7

FromLatinab(“of, off, from, away”).

Prefix

a-

2. (no longerproductive)Away from.[First attested from around 1150 to 1350.]

   avert,aperient,abridge,assoil,assoilzie

Usage notes

• Variation of the prefixab-,only used when the stem starts with the letterporv,or (rarely)sin which case thesis doubled (as inassoilandassoilzie).

Etymology 8

FromMiddle Englisha-,o-(“of”).Seea(preposition,of).

Prefix

a-

2. (no longerproductive)Of, from.[First attested prior to 1150.]

   anew,afresh,athirst

Usage notes

Different Germanic and Latinate senses ofa-became confused (vaguely “intensive" ) and are all unproductive. The Greek sense of “not” (e.g.,amoral,asymmetry) remains in use.

“[I]t naturally happened that all thesea-prefixes were at length confusedly lumped together in idea, and the resultanta-looked upon as vaguely intensive, rhetorical,euphonic[nice-sounding], or even archaic, and whollyotiose[pointless].” OED.

Derived terms

English terms prefixed with a-

References

• Lesley Brown, editor-in-chief, William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, editors (2002), “a-”, inThe Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles,5th edition, Oxford, New York, N.Y.:Oxford University Press,→ISBN,page 1.
• Christine A. Lindberg, editor (2002), “a-”, inThe Oxford College Dictionary,2nd edition, New York, N.Y.: Spark Publishing,→ISBN,page 1.
• Laurence Urdang (editor),The Random House College Dictionary(Random House, 1984 [1975],→ISBN), page 1
• Douglas Harper (2001–2025) “a-”,inOnline Etymology Dictionary.

Etymology 9

Prefix

a-

2. Alternative form of-a(“empty syllable added to songs, poetry, verse and other speech”)

   A-tisketa-tasket,
   A green and yellow basket

Etymology 10

Prefix

a-

2. (Chester)Used as a prefix to verbs in the sense of remaining in the same condition.Actively doing something.

   a-be,a-going

   Let that choilta-be, wilt ta.―Let that child alone, will you.

A-Pucikwar

Prefix

a-

1. prefix attached to words relating to the mouth, such as the names of languages

Catalan

Etymology 1

BorrowedfromAncient Greekἀ-(a-).

Prefix

a-

1. a-(not, without)

   ‎a-+ ‎moral(“moral”)→ ‎amoral(“amoral”)

Derived terms

Catalan terms prefixed with a-

Etymology 2

FromLatinad(“towards”).

Prefix

a-

1. used to make verbs from adjectives and nouns

   ‎a-+ ‎feble(“weak”)→ ‎afeblir(“to weaken”)

   ‎a-+ ‎sabor(“taste”)→ ‎assaborir(“to taste”)

Derived terms

Catalan terms prefixed with a-

Further reading

• “a-”inDiccionari de la llengua catalana, segona edició,Institut d’Estudis Catalans.
• “a-”,inGran Diccionari de la Llengua Catalana,Grup Enciclopèdia Catalana,2025
• “a-”inDiccionari normatiu valencià,Acadèmia Valenciana de la Llengua.

Danish

Prefix

a-

1. a-,un-(not)
2. A-(atomic,nuclear)

   Synonyms:atom-,A-

Derived terms

Danish terms prefixed with a-

Dutch

Etymology

FromAncient Greekἀ-(a-)(ἀν-(an-)immediately preceding a vowel).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key):/aː/

• Audio:

  (file)

Prefix

a-

1. a-:not,without, opposite of

Derived terms

Dutch terms prefixed with a-

See also

• an-

Esperanto

Etymology

FromAncient Greekἀ-(a-).

Prefix

a-

1. without,-less

Derived terms

Esperanto terms prefixed with a-

Related terms

• mal-,ne-,sen-

Fingallian

Etymology

FromMiddle Englisha-(“on”),derived from unstressedMiddle Englishan(“on”),fromOld Englishan(“on”).

Prefix

a-

1. Used to show a state, condition, or manner.
   • A NORTH-COUNTY DUBLIN CLOSSARY:

     The hay isa-cutting now. You'rea-wanting.

References

• J. J. Hogan and Patrick C. O'Neill (1947)Béaloideas Iml. 17, Uimh 1/2,An Cumann Le Béaloideas Eireann/Folklore of lreland Society, page263

Finnish

Etymology

Internationalism(seeEnglisha-), ultimately fromAncient Greekἀ-(a-).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key):/ˈɑ-/,[ˈɑ̝-]

Prefix

a-

1. (in loanwords)a-,non-,un-

   Synonym:epä-

Franco-Provençal

Etymology

InheritedfromLatinad-.

Prefix

a-(ORB)

1. Attaches to verbs, sometimes adding a sense of "toward".

Derived terms

Franco-Provençal terms prefixed with a-

French

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key):/a/

Etymology 1

InheritedfromOld Frencha-,fromLatinad-.

Prefix

a-

1. A prefix forming words, especially verbs, that denote entering a state, making progress toward a goal, or the like.

Etymology 2

FromAncient Greekἀ-(a-)(ἀν-(an-)immediately preceding a vowel; generalized from the many Latin borrowings using this prefix.

Prefix

a-

1. a-,non-,-less

Derived terms

French terms prefixed with a-

Further reading

• “a-”,inTrésor de la langue française informatisé[Digitized Treasury of the French Language],2012.

Galician

Etymology 1

FromOld Galician-Portuguesea-,fromLatinad-.

Prefix

a-

1. added toadjectiveX, forms verbs meaning to make/turn X

   ‎a-+ ‎curto(“short”)+ ‎-ar→ ‎acurtar(“to shorten”)

2. added tonounX, forms verbs meaning to cause or make X or to cause something to have X

   ‎a-+ ‎fervor(“passion”)+ ‎-ar→ ‎afervoar(“to excite”)

Etymology 2

BorrowedfromAncient Greekἀ-(a-),fromProto-Indo-European*n̥-.

Prefix

a-

1. a-(not; without)

   Synonym:in-

Derived terms

Galician terms prefixed with a-

German

Etymology

FromAncient Greekἀ-(a-)(ἀν-(an-)immediately preceding a vowel).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key):/a/

• Audio:

  (file)

Prefix

a-

1. a-(not, without, opposite of)

Derived terms

German terms prefixed with a-

Further reading

• “a-”inDudenonline
• “a-”inDigitales Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache

Hanunoo

Etymology

FromProto-Malayo-Polynesian*ha-(adjectival prefix for adjectives of measure).CompareBikol Centralha-andCebuanoha-.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key):/ʔa/[ʔa]
• Syllabification:a-

Prefix

a-(Hanunoo spellingᜠ)

1. adjectival prefix to words denoting height, length, or depth

Derived terms

Hanunoo terms prefixed with a-

Further reading

• Blust, Robert; Trussel, Stephen; et al. (2023) “*ha-₁”,in the CLDF dataset fromThe Austronesian Comparative Dictionary(2010–),→DOI

Indonesian

Etymology

FromSanskritअ-(a-,“un-, not”),fromProto-Indo-Iranian*a-,fromProto-Indo-European*n̥-.

• Reinforced as borrowing fromDutcha-,fromAncient Greekἀ-(a-)(formἀν-(an-)immediately preceding a vowel), fromProto-Hellenic*ə-,from the sameProto-Indo-European*n̥-.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key):[a]
• Hyphenation:a

Prefix

a-

1. a-(not, without, opposite of)

Derived terms

Indonesian terms prefixed with a-

Further reading

• “a-”inKamus Besar Bahasa Indonesia,Jakarta:Agency for Language Development and Cultivation–Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology of the Republic of Indonesia,2016.

Irish

Alternative forms

• ai-(before a palatalized consonant,both etymologies)

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key):/a/,/ə/

Etymology 1

FromAncient Greekἀ-(a-)(ἀν-(an-)immediately followed by a vowel).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key):/a/

Prefix

a-

1. a-(not, without, opposite of)

Derived terms

Irish terms prefixed with a-

Etymology 2

Prefix

a-

1. Alternative form ofath-used beforet

Italian

Etymology 1

InheritedfromLatinad-.

Prefix

a-

1. ad-(indicating direction)

Usage notes

• The Italian prefixa-often reduplicates the following consonant (syntactic gemination,raddoppiamento fonosintattico).
• The actual forms usually will beab-(inabbracciare),ac-(inaccorrere),ad-(inaddestrare),al-(inallargare) etc.

Etymology 2

BorrowedfromAncient Greekἀ-(a-).

Prefix

a-

1. a-(indicating lack or loss)

Alternative forms

• an-(before a vowel)

Derived terms

Italian terms prefixed with a-

Japhug

Etymology

(Thisetymologyis missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at theEtymology scriptorium.)

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key):/a/

Prefix

a-

1. (Kamnyu)my

Derived terms

Japhug terms prefixed with a-

See also

Japhug (Kamnyu) personal pronouns and possessive prefixes
Number	Person	Possessive prefixes	Free pronoun	Genitive
Singular	1st	a-	aʑo,aj	aʑɯɣ
	2nd	nɤ-	nɤʑo,nɤj	nɤʑɯɣ
	3rd	ɯ-	ɯʑo	ɯʑɤɣ
Dual	1st	tɕi-	tɕiʑo	tɕiʑɤɣ
	2nd	ndʑi-	ndʑiʑo	ndʑiʑɤɣ
	3rd		ʑɤni	ʑɤniɣɯ
Plural	1st	i-	iʑo,iʑora,iʑɤra	iʑɤɣ,iʑɤraɣɯ
	2nd	nɯ-	nɯʑo,nɯʑora,nɯʑɤra	nɯʑɤɣ,nɯʑɤraɣɯ
	3rd		ʑara	ʑaraɣ,ʑaraɣɯ
Generic		tɯ-	tɯʑo

Latin

Etymology 1

Prefix

ā-

1. Alternative form ofab-

Usage notes

Used before bilabial voiced consonants:b-,m-andv-.

Etymology 2

Fromad(“towards”).

Prefix

a-

1. (Before a word beginning withsc,sporst)Alternative form ofad-

   ‎a-+ ‎scandere(“climb”)→ ‎ascendere(“climb up, go up; rise, spring up”)

   ‎a-+ ‎scrībere(“write”)→ ‎ascrībere(“state in writing, add in writing; insert; appoint, enroll, enfranchise, reckon, number”)

   ‎a-+ ‎spīrāre(“breathe”)→ ‎aspīrāre(“breathe or blow upon; am favorable to, assist, favor, aid; aspire or desire (to); approach, come near (to)”)

   ‎a-+ ‎specere(“observe, look at”)→ ‎aspicere(“look at or towards, behold; regard, respect; observe, notice; examine, inspect; consider, ponder”)

   ‎a-+ ‎stringere(“press, tighten, compress”)→ ‎astringere(“draw close, bind or tie together; tighten, contract; check, restrain; oblige, necessitate”)

   ‎a-+ ‎struere(“compose, construct, build; ready, prepare; place, arrange”)→ ‎astruere(“build near or to a thing, erect; build on, heap; build an additional structure”)

Latvian

Etymology

Via other European languages, ultimately fromAncient Greekἀ-(a-)(ἀν-(an-)immediately preceding a vowel).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key):[a]

• Audio:

  (file)

Prefix

a-

1. Not,nothaving,without,oppositeof.

   ‎a-+ ‎seksuāls→ ‎aseksuāls

Mohawk

Alternative forms

• aon-(befores-(“iterative”)andt-(“cislocative”))

Prefix

a-

1. irrealisprefix

References

• Nora Deering, Helga H. Delisle (1976)Mohawk: A teaching grammar(preliminary version), Quebec: Manitou College, page332

Murui Huitoto

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key):[a-]

Prefix

a-

1. (unproductive)Used to form a few adverbs signifying a location or motion from or to above.

Derived terms

Murui Huitoto terms prefixed with a-

Related terms

• aa

References

• Katarzyna Izabela Wojtylak (2017)A grammar of Murui (Bue): a Witotoan language of Northwest Amazonia.‎^[1],Townsville: James Cook University press (PhD thesis), page145

Navajo

Prefix

a-

1. someone's,people's

Usage notes

This prefix is often used as a neutral possessive pronoun to make the citation forms ofinalienablenouns:amá(“someone's mother”),akʼos(“someone's neck”),ajáád(“someone's leg”),ajááʼ(“someone's ear”),akʼéí(“someone's kin”).The alternative is to use the prefixha-(“one's”)orbi-(“his/her/its/their”)to make these dictionary forms.

See also

Navajo possessive pronouns

			singular	dual	plural
1st person			shi-	nihi-	danihi-
2nd person			ni-	nihi-	danihi-
3rd person			bi-
4th person (3o)			yi-
4th person (3a)			ha-,hw-
Indefinite person (3i)			a-

• á-
• ał-
• ahił-

Neapolitan

Etymology

InheritedfromLatinad-.

Prefix

a-

1. compareItaliana-

Derived terms

Neapolitan terms prefixed with a-

Northern Ndebele

Etymology 1

FromProto-Bantu*gá-.

Prefix

a-(medialwa-)

1. they;class 6 subject concord.

Etymology 2

FromProto-Bantu*gáá-.

Prefix

a-

1. of;class 6 possessive concord.

Etymology 3

(Thisetymologyis missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at theEtymology scriptorium.)

Prefix

a-

1. Class 6 relative concord.

Norwegian Bokmål

Etymology 1

From the first letter of the Norwegian Alpha beta,fromLatina,fromAncient GreekΑ(A,“Alpha”),likely through theEtruscanlanguage, fromPhoenician𐤀(ʾ),from Proto-Canaanite,from Proto-Sinaitic,fromEgyptian𓃾.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key):/ɑː/

• Audio:

  (file)

• Rhymes:-ɑː
• Hyphenation:a-
• Homophones:A,a,A-,à,ah

Prefix

a-

2. indicating thefirstorbestin something

   Synonyms:a,A-

   ‎a-+ ‎lag→ ‎a-lag

Etymology 2

FromAncient Greekἀ-(a-,“not, without”),fromProto-Hellenic*ə-(“un-, not; without, lacking”),fromProto-Indo-European*n̥-(“not, un-”).Doubletofu-.

Comparean-(ἀν-(an-)immediately preceding a vowel).

Prefix

a-

2. a-(not, without, opposite of)

   Synonyms:a,an-

   ‎a-+ ‎politisk(“political”)→ ‎apolitisk(“apolitical”)

   ‎a-+ ‎sosial(“social”)→ ‎asosial(“asocial”)

   ‎a-+ ‎symmetrisk(“symmetrical”)→ ‎asymmetrisk(“asymmetrical”)

   ‎a-+ ‎gnostiker(“gnostic”)→ ‎agnostiker(“agnostic”)

Alternative forms

• an-

Derived terms

Norwegian Bokmål terms prefixed with a-

Etymology 3

Clippingofatom-,from the nounatom(“atom”),fromAncient Greekἄτομος(átomos,“indivisible, uncut, undivided”),whereas atombombe is a calque ofEnglishatomic bomb.

Prefix

a-

2. Short foratom-.

   ‎a-+ ‎bombe→ ‎a-bombe

References

• “a-”inThe Bokmål Dictionary.
• “a-”inDet Norske Akademis ordbok(NAOB).
• “a-”inStore norske leksikon

Anagrams

• A,A-,a

Norwegian Nynorsk

Etymology

FromAncient Greekἀ-(a-,“not, without”).

Prefix

a-

1. a-(not, without)

Derived terms

Norwegian Nynorsk terms prefixed with a-

References

• “a-”inThe Nynorsk Dictionary.

Old English

Alternative forms

• ar-,a-

Etymology

From an earlier formar-,fromProto-West Germanic*uʀ-,fromProto-Germanic*uz-.Cognate withOld High Germanar-,ir-(Germaner-).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key):/ɑː/

Prefix

ā-

1. from,away,off,out

   āniman―to take away, to remove

Derived terms

Old English terms prefixed with a-

Descendants

• Middle English:a-
  • English:a-

Old French

Etymology

FromLatinad,which was often reduced toa-in compounds.

Prefix

a-

1. indicating movement towards something
2. (by extension)indicating a change of state
3. intensifying prefix
4. alternative form ofes-

Derived terms

Old French terms prefixed with a-

Old Irish

Prefix

a-(class A infixed pronoun)

1. him(triggers eclipsis)
2. it(triggers lenition)

Usage notes

This form merges with the prefixesro-,no-,di-,to-,fo-,ar-,andimm-to formra-,na-,da-,da-,fa-,ara-,imma-respectively. It disappears after the particlení(“not”),its only trace being the mutation it causes (eclipsis in the case of the masculine, lenition in the case of the neuter), thusní cara(does not love)vs.ní chara(does not love it),ní ben(does not strike)vs.ní mben(does not strike him).

Derived terms

Old Irish terms prefixed with a-

See also

Old Irish affixed pronouns

SeeAppendix:Old Irish affixed pronounsfor details on how these forms are used.
Note that the so-called “infixed” pronouns are technically prefixes, but they are never the first prefix in a verbal complex.

Person	Infixed			Suffixed
	Class A	Class B	Class C
1 sing.	m-L	dom-L,dam-L		-um
2 sing.	t-L	dot-L,dat-L,dut-L,dit-L		-ut
3 sing. m.	a-N,e-N	d-N	id-N,did-N,d-N	-i,-it
3 sing. f.	s-(N)	da-		-us
3 sing. n.	a-L,e-L	d-L	id-L,did-L,d-L	-i,-it
1 pl.	n-	don-,dun-,dan-		-unn
2 pl.	b-	dob-,dub-,dab-		-uib
3 pl.	s-(N)	da-		-us
Lmeans this form triggers lenition. Nmeans this form triggers nasalization (eclipsis) (N)means this form triggers nasalization in some texts but not in others.

Old Javanese

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key):/a/

Etymology 1

(Thisetymologyis missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at theEtymology scriptorium.)

Prefix

a-

1. active verb forming

   Synonyms:(m)aN-,-um-

2. adjective forming

Etymology 2

BorrowedfromSanskritअ-(a-,“un-,not”)

Prefix

a-

1. un-,not

Derived terms

Old Javanese terms prefixed with a-

Old Saxon

Etymology

From an earlier formar-,fromProto-Germanic*uz-.Cognate withOld Englisha-,Old High Germanar-,ir-(Germaner-).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key):/ɑː/

Prefix

a-

1. forming words with the sensefrom,away,out,off,e.g.animan

Derived terms

Old Saxon terms prefixed with a-

Phuthi

Etymology

FromProto-Bantu*gá-.

Prefix

a-(medialwa-)

1. they;class 6 subject concord.

Polish

Alternative forms

• an-

Etymology

Learned borrowingfromAncient Greekἀ-(a-).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key):/a/

• Audio:

  (file)

• Rhymes:-a
• Syllabification:[please specify syllabification manually]
• Homophones:a,-a

Prefix

a-

1. forming words with the sense of negation,a-

   ‎a-+ ‎społeczny→ ‎aspołeczny

Derived terms

Polish terms prefixed with a-

Further reading

• a-in Polish dictionaries at PWN

Portuguese

Pronunciation

• (Brazil)IPA^(key):/a/
• (Portugal)IPA^(key):/ɐ/
• Homophones:A,a,à,há

Etymology 1

FromOld Galician-Portuguesea-,fromLatinad-.

Prefix

a-

1. added toadjectiveX, forms verbs meaning to make/turn X

   ‎a-+ ‎vermelho(“red”)+ ‎-ar→ ‎avermelhar(“to redden”)

   ‎a-+ ‎baixo(“low”)+ ‎-ar→ ‎abaixar(“to lower”)

2. added tonounX, forms verbs meaning to cause or make X or to cause something to have X

   ‎a-+ ‎pavor(“dread”)+ ‎-ar→ ‎apavorar(“to frighten”)

   ‎a-+ ‎fama(“fame”)+ ‎-ar→ ‎afamar(“to make famous”)

Etymology 2

BorrowedfromAncient Greekἀ-(a-),fromProto-Indo-European*n̥-.

Alternative forms

• an-(before a vowel sound)

Prefix

a-

1. a-(not; without)

   Synonym:in-

   amoral―amoral

   anaeróbio―anaerobic

Derived terms

Portuguese terms prefixed with a-

Sardinian

Etymology

InheritedfromClassical Latinad-,from the prepositionad(“to, towards”).

Prefix

a-

1. ad-(toward, to, tendency)

Derived terms

Sardinian terms prefixed with a-

Scots

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key):/ə/

Etymology 1

FromMiddle Englisha-(“on”),derived from unstressedMiddle Englishan(“on”),fromOld Englishan(“on”).

Prefix

a-

1. on

   aback,agley,agrufe,athort,atween

Etymology 2

FromMiddle Englisha-,fromOld Englishof-(“off”).

Prefix

a-

1. off

   adoon

Etymology 3

FromOld Norseat-(“to”).

Prefix

a-

1. to

   adae,agae

Etymology 4

FromMiddle Englisha-(“up, out, away”),fromOld Englishā-,originally*ar-,*or-,fromProto-Germanic*uz-(“out-”).

Prefix

a-

1. awayfrom

   abide,arise

Etymology 5

FromMiddle Englishand-,fromOld Englishand-(“against, back”),fromProto-Germanic*andi-(“across, opposite, against, away”).

Prefix

a-

1. against,opposite

   alang

Etymology 6

FromMiddle Englisha-,fromOld Englishane(“one”).

Prefix

a-

1. one

   awhile

Etymology 7

From ah!

Prefix

a-

1. ah

   aweel,alake

Etymology 8

FromMiddle Englisha-,fromMiddle Frencha-,fromLatinad(“towards”).

Prefix

a-

1. towards

   avise

Etymology 9

FromLatinab(“of, off, from, away”).

Prefix

a-

1. awayfrom

   assoilzie

References

• “a,prefix.¹”,inThe Dictionary of the Scots Language,Edinburgh:Scottish Language Dictionaries,2004–present,→OCLC.

Serbo-Croatian

Etymology

FromAncient Greekἀ-(a-)(ἀν-(an-)immediately preceding a vowel), fromProto-Indo-European*n̥-(“un-, not”),zero-gradeform of*ne(“not”).Doubletofne.

Prefix

a-(Cyrillic spellingа-)

1. Prefix prepended to words to denote a negation, deprivation or absence of a property denoted by base word.

   Synonyms:bez-,ne-

   ‎a-+ ‎sȍcijālan→ ‎ȁsocijālan

   ‎a-+ ‎simètrija→ ‎asimètrija

   ‎a-+ ‎brahija→ ‎abrahija

References

• “a-”,inHrvatski jezični portal[Croatian language portal] (in Serbo-Croatian),2006–2025

Southern Ndebele

Etymology 1

FromProto-Bantu*gá-.

Prefix

a-(medialwa-)

1. they;class 6 subject concord.

Etymology 2

FromProto-Bantu*gáá-.

Prefix

a-

1. of;class 6 possessive concord.

Etymology 3

(Thisetymologyis missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at theEtymology scriptorium.)

Prefix

a-

1. Class 6 relative concord.

Spanish

Etymology 1

InheritedfromLatinad-.

Prefix

a-

1. forms words, especially verbs, that denote entering a state, making progress toward a goal, or the like

See also

• en-

Etymology 2

FromAncient Greekἀ-(a-)(ἀν-(an-)immediately preceding a vowel; generalized from the many Latin borrowings using this prefix.

Prefix

a-

1. a-,non-,-less

Usage notes

• Used with stems that begin with consonants excepth.an-is synonymous and is used in front of words that start with vowels andh.For example,analfabetismo(“an Alpha betism”).

Derived terms

Spanish terms prefixed with a-

Further reading

• “a-”,inDiccionario de la lengua española[Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.8,Royal Spanish Academy[Spanish:Real Academia Española], 2024 December 10

Swahili

Etymology 1

FromProto-Bantu*à-.

Prefix

a-

1. she,he;3rd person singular (m class_(I)) subject concord

   Antonym:ha-

See also

Swahili personal pronouns (m-wa class_(I/II))

Number	Person	Independent	Subject concord		Object concord	Combined forms			Possessive
			affirmative	negative		na	ndi-	si-
Singular	First	mimi	ni-	si-	-ni-	nami,namimi	ndimi,ndiye	simi,siye	-angu
	Second	wewe	u-	hu-	-ku-	nawe,nawewe	ndiwe,ndiye	siwe,siye	-ako
	Third	yeye	a-,yu-	ha-,hayu-	-m-,-mw-,-mu-	naye,nayeye	ndiye	siye	-ake
Plural	First	sisi	tu-	hatu-	-tu-	nasi,nasisi	ndisi,ndio	sio	-etu
	Second	ninyi	m-,mw-,mu-	ham-,hamw-,hamu-	-wa-	nanyi,naninyi	ndinyi,ndio	sinyi,sio	-enu
	Third	wao	wa-	hawa-	-wa-	nao	ndio	sio	-ao
Reflexive		—	—		-ji-	—			—
For a full table including other classes, seeAppendix:Swahili personal pronouns.

Etymology 2

Prefix

a-

1. Contraction ofa-+-a-(“3rd person singular (m class_(I)) gnomic”).

Swazi

Etymology 1

FromProto-Bantu*à-.

Prefix

a-(medialka-)

1. he,she,it;class 1 subject concord, used in the subjunctive and potential mood.

See also

• u-(in other cases)

Etymology 2

FromProto-Bantu*gá-.

Prefix

a-(medialwa-)

1. they;class 6 subject concord.

Etymology 3

FromProto-Bantu*gáá-.

Prefix

a-

1. of;class 6 possessive concord.

Tagal Murut

Etymology

FromProto-Malayo-Polynesian*ma-,fromProto-Austronesian*ma-(stative prefix).

Prefix

a-

1. used to form adjectives indicating a quality

   ‎a-+ ‎amis(“sweetness”)→ ‎a-amis(“sweet”)

   ‎a-+ ‎laat(“badness”)→ ‎a-laat(“bad”)

Tagalog

Etymology 1

BorrowedfromSpanisha,fromLatinad.

Pronunciation

• (Standard Tagalog)IPA^(key):/ʔa/[ʔɐ]
• Syllabification:a-

Prefix

a-(Baybayin spellingᜀ)

1. at(indicating time)

   Puntahan kita saa-primerong Marso.

   I'll go to you at thefirstof March.

   Sahuran tuwinga-kinseng bawat buwan.

   It is payday every15^thof every month.

   A-treynta y unokahapon.

   Yesterday was the31^st.

Usage notes

• Only used before Spanish cardinal numbers to tell the date for a month. For the first day of a month,a-primerois more correct buta-unois also used by younger speakers. The prefix has the same function asika-for Tagalog cardinal numbers.
• The prefix is optional but Spanish-oriented speakers often use it.

Derived terms

Tagalog terms prefixed with a-

Etymology 2

Pronunciation

• (Standard Tagalog)IPA^(key):/ˈʔa/[ˈʔaː]
• Syllabification:a-

Prefix

á-(Baybayin spellingᜀ)(dialectal,chieflyMindoro)

1. forms contemplative aspect forms for verbs in the object or directional trigger

Usage notes

• Can be considered as a dialectal equivalent to the reduplicated syllable for some verbs.

  ‎á-+ ‎tápon(“throw”)→ ‎átápon(“will be thrown”):equivalent toitatapon

  ‎á-+ ‎inóm(“drink”)+ ‎-in→ ‎áinumín(“will be drunk”):equivalent toiinumin

  ‎á-+ ‎gawâ(“drink”)+ ‎-an→ ‎ágaw-án(“will be done for”):equivalent togagawan

  ‎á-+ ‎pakuluan(“to be boiled”)→ ‎ápakuluán(“will let to be boiled”):equivalent topakukuluan

• When used within-,forms the progressive aspect forms of verbs.

  ‎in-+ ‎á-+ ‎tápon(“throw”)→ ‎inátápon(“being thrown”):equivalent toitinatapon

  ‎in-+ ‎á-+ ‎inóm(“drink”)→ ‎ináinóm(“being drunk”):equivalent toiniinom

  ‎in-+ ‎á-+ ‎gawâ(“drink”)+ ‎-an→ ‎inágaw-án(“being done for”):equivalent toginagawan

  ‎in-+ ‎á-+ ‎pakuluan(“to be let boiled”)→ ‎inápakuluán(“letting to be boiled”):equivalent topinakukuluan

See also

• ga-
• maga-
• naga-

Tashelhit

Etymology

FromProto-Berber.

Prefix

a-.

1. the masculine form of nouns.
2. the masculine form of adjectives.

Tooro

Alternative forms

• (before-a-or subjunctive-e-)y-
• (before vowels in other cases)ay-

Etymology

FromProto-Bantu*à-.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key):/a-/

Prefix

a-

1. he,she;class 1 subject concord

   ‎a-+ ‎-kora(“to do”)→ ‎akora(“he/she does”)

See also

Tooro personal pronouns

Class	Person	Independent	Possessive	Subject concord	Object concord	Combined forms
						na	ni
Class 1	First	nyowe,nye	-ange	n-	-n-	nanyowe,nanye	ninyowe,ninye
	Second	iwe	-awe	o-	-ku-	naiwe	niiwe
	Third	uwe	-e	a-	-mu-	nawe	nuwe
Class 2	First	itwe	-aitu	tu-	-tu-	naitwe	niitwe
	Second	inywe	-anyu	mu-	-ba-	nainywe	niinywe
	Third	abo	-abo	ba-	-ba-	nabo	nubo
Class 3		gwo	-agwo	gu-	-gu-	nagwo	nugwo
Class 4		yo	-ayo	e-	-gi-	nayo	niyo
Class 5		lyo	-alyo	li-	-li-	nalyo	niryo
Class 6		go	-ago	ga-	-ga-	nago	nugo
Class 7		kyo	-akyo	ki-	-ki-	nakyo	nikyo
Class 8		byo	-abyo	bi-	-bi-	nabyo	nibyo
Class 9		yo	-ayo	e-	-gi-	nayo	niyo
Class 10		zo	-azo	zi-	-zi-	nazo	nizo
Class 11		rwo	-arwo	ru-	-ru-	narwo	nurwo
Class 12		ko	-ako	ka-	-ka-	nako	nuko
Class 13		two	-atwo	tu-	-tu-	natwo	nutwo
Class 14		bwo	-abwo	bu-	-bu-	nabwo	nubwo
Class 15		kwo	-akwo	ku-	-ku-	nakwo	nukwo
Class 16		ho	-aho	ha-	-ha-	naho	nuho
Class 17		(kwo)	N/A	ha- (...-yo)	-ha-	N/A	nukwo
Class 18		(mwo)	-amwo	ha- (...-mu)	-ha-	N/A	numwo
Reflexive		-enyini,-onyini	—		-e-	—

References

• Kaji, Shigeki (2007)A Rutooro Vocabulary‎^[2],Tokyo: Research Institute for Languages and Cultures of Asia and Africa (ILCAA),→ISBN,page413

Welsh

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key):/a/

Prefix

a-

1. affirmative prefix, emphasises prefixed word

   ‎a-+ ‎trist(“sad”)→ ‎athrist(“very sad, sorrowful”)

   ‎a-+ ‎traidd(“piercing, penetration”)→ ‎athraidd(“permeable”)

Usage notes

Triggersaspirate mutationof the following consonant.

Derived terms

Welsh terms prefixed with a-

Mutation

Mutated formsofa-

radical	soft	nasal	h-prothesis
a-	unchanged	unchanged	ha-

Note:Certain mutated forms of some words can never occur in standard Welsh.
All possible mutated forms are displayed for convenience.

References

• R. J. Thomas, G. A. Bevan, P. J. Donovan, A. Hawke et al., editors (1950–present), “a-”,inGeiriadur Prifysgol Cymru Online(in Welsh), University of Wales Centre for Advanced Welsh & Celtic Studies

Xhosa

Etymology 1

FromProto-Bantu*gá-.

Prefix

a-(medialwa-)

1. they;class 6 subject concord.

Etymology 2

FromProto-Bantu*gáá-.

Prefix

a-

1. of;class 6 possessive concord.

Etymology 3

(Thisetymologyis missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at theEtymology scriptorium.)

Prefix

a-

1. Class 6 relative concord.

Etymology 4

FromProto-Bantu*nkà-.

Prefix

a-

1. not

Usage notes

Used in the indicative mood, prefixed to the subject concord.

Ye'kwana

Variant orthographies

ALIV	a-
Brazilian standard	a-
New Tribes	a-

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key):[a-]

Prefix

a-

1. allomorph oföt-(detransitivizing prefix)
2. allomorph ofö-(second-person prefix)used for stems that begin with a consonant and have a first vowelaore

Inflection

Ye'kwana personal markers

	pronoun	noun possessor/ series II verb argument		postposition object		series I verb argument
						transitive patient	intransitive patient-like		intransitive agent-like	transitive agent
first person	ewü	y-,∅-,ü-,u-1						w-,wi-
first person dual inclusive	küwü	k-,kü-,ku-,ki-								k-,kii-,ki-1
second person	amödö	ö-,öy-/ödh-,o-,oy-/odh-,a-,ay-/adh-							m-,mi-
first person dual exclusive	nña	y-/dh-,ch-,∅-,i-1			chö-	∅-	n-,ni-
third person	tüwü					n-,ni-
distant past third person		—				kün-,kun-,kin-,ken-,küm-,kum-,kim-,kini-
coreferential/reflexive	—	t-,tü-,tu-,ti-,te-				—
reciprocal	—	—	öö-
With following vowel lengthened if in an unreduced open syllable.

	series I verb argument: transitive agent and transitive patient
first person > second person	mön-,man-,mon-,möm-,möni-
first person dual exclusive > second person
second person > first person	k-,kü-,ku-,ki-
second person > first person dual exclusive
third person > any person X…or…any person X > third person	see person X in the chart above

Zulu

Etymology 1

FromProto-Bantu*à-.

Prefix

á-(medialká-)

1. he,she,it;class 1 subject concord, used in the subjunctive and potential mood.

See also

• u-(in other cases)

Etymology 2

FromProto-Bantu*gá-.

Prefix

á-(medialwá-)

1. they;class 6 subject concord.

Etymology 3

FromProto-Bantu*gáá-.

Prefix

a-

1. of;class 6 possessive concord.

Etymology 4

Originally a reduced form ofla-(“general demonstrative”).Compare Swazi relative forms such aslesi-,which still keep the initiall-.

Prefix

ā́-

1. Used to form relative clauses.

Usage notes

This prefix has conditioned allomorphso-ande-.

Etymology 5

Froma-(“relative”)+‎a-(“class 6”).

Prefix

ā́-

1. Class 6 relative concord.

Etymology 6

FromProto-Bantu*nkà-.

Prefix

a-

1. not

Usage notes

Used in the indicative mood, prefixed to the subject concord.

Alternative forms

• ka-

Etymology 7

Prefix

a-

1. Alternative form ofma-(hortative)

References

• C. M. Doke,B. W. Vilakazi(1972) “a-”, inZulu-English Dictionary,→ISBN:“a-”