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• ala
  ala

  noun

  a wing.
• Ala
  Ala

  noun

  Hussein 1888–1964, Iranian statesman and diplomat: premier in 1951 and from 1955 to 1957.
• Ala.
  Ala.

  abbreviation

  Alabama.
• A.L.A.
  A.L.A.

  abbreviation

  American Library Association.

ala

¹ American  

[ey-luh] / ˈeɪ lə /

noun

alae plural

1. a wing.

2. a winglike part, process, or expansion, as of a bone, shell, seed, or stem.

3. either of the two side petals of a flower in the legume family, as the pea.

4. (in an ancient Roman house) a small room, as an alcove, opening into a larger room or courtyard.

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Ala ² American  

[ah-lah] / ˈɑ lɑ /

noun

1. Hussein 1888–1964, Iranian statesman and diplomat: premier in 1951 and from 1955 to 1957.

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Ala ³ American  

abbreviation

Biochemistry.

1. alanine.

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Ala. ⁴ American  

abbreviation

1. Alabama.

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A.L.A. ⁵ American  

abbreviation

1. American Library Association.

2. Associate in Liberal Arts.

3. Authors League of America.

4. Automobile Legal Association.

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ala ¹ British  

/ ˈeɪlə /

noun

1. zoology a wing or flat winglike process or structure, such as a part of some bones and cartilages

2. botany a winglike part, such as one of the wings of a sycamore seed or one of the flat petals of a sweet pea flower

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Ala. ² British  

abbreviation

1. Alabama

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• alae
  plural

Etymology

Origin of ala

1730–40; < Latin āla wing, armpit, shoulder, representing *aks-lā, derivative of same base as axis axle ( see axis ¹); see axle

Example Sentences

Navy’s two hospital ships, both of which are undergoing maintenance in Mobile, Ala.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 24, 2026

She was born in Michigan and also has ties to Montgomery, Ala.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 9, 2025

Her two sisters, Ala and Jana, nod in agreement as we sit, squeezed together on this cold winter's day, on an old lumpy sofa in their humble home in Homs.

From BBC • Dec. 17, 2024

Memory has reduced “Forrest Gump” to a few lines of dialogue and the ubiquitous meme of Tom Hanks “running like the wind” blows down the country road outside his home in Greenbow, Ala.

From Salon • Jul. 7, 2024

“Is that why you wanted to study the Ala Wai Canal for the observation journal?”

From "Clairboyance" by Kristiana Kahakauwila