-a¹suffixforming:
1ancient or Latinized modern names of animals and plants:primula.
2names of oxides:baryta.
3geographical names:Africa.
4ancient or Latinized modern feminine forenames:Lydia.
5nouns from Italian, Portuguese, and Spanish:stanza.
Origin
representing a Gk, L., or Romance feminine singular-a²suffixforming plural nouns:
1from Greek or Latin neuter plurals corresponding to a singular in-umor-on(such asaddenda,phenomena).
2in names (often from modern Latin) of zoological groups:Insectivora.-a³suffixinformal
1of:coupla.
2have:mighta.
3to:oughta.aPhysicsacceleration.
→ headworda-¹(oftenan-before a vowel)
prefixnot; without:atheistic.
Origin
from Gk.a-²prefix
1to; towards:aside.
2in the process of:a-hunting.
in a specified state:aflutter.
Origin
OE, unstressed form of on.a-³prefixvariant spelling of ad- beforesc,sp, andst(as inascend,aspireandastringent).a-⁴prefix
1of:anew.
2utterly:abash.
Origin
unstressed form of of (sense 1); Anglo-Norman Fr.a-, from L.ex(sense 2).a/cabbreviation
1account.
2(alsoA/C) air conditioning.a¹(anbefore a vowel sound)
determiner
1used when mentioning someone or something for the first time; the indefinite article.
one single:a hundred.
used when mentioning someone unfamiliar:a Mr Smith telephoned.
someone like (the name specified).
2in, to, or for each; per:petrol prices rose by 3p a litre.
Origin
ME: weak form of OEān'one'.
Usage
On the question of usingaoranbefore words beginning withh, seeusageat an.a²abbreviation
1(in travel timetables) arrives.
2atto- (10^-18).
3Brit.(with reference to sporting fixtures) away.
4(used before a date) before. [from L.ante.]
symbol(a)Physicsacceleration.n/aabbreviation
1not applicable.
2not available.