ala
noun
a wing.
ala
1 American
[ay-luh]
/ ˈeɪ lə /
noun
-
alae
plural
-
a wing.
-
a winglike part, process, or expansion, as of a bone, shell, seed, or stem.
-
either of the two side petals of a flower in the legume family, as the pea.
-
(in an ancient Roman house) a small room, as an alcove, opening into a larger room or courtyard.
Ala
2
American
[ah-lah]
/ ˈɑ lɑ /
noun
Ala
3
American
abbreviation
Biochemistry.
Ala.
4
American
abbreviation
A.L.A.
5
American
abbreviation
-
American Library Association.
-
Associate in Liberal Arts.
-
Authors League of America.
-
Automobile Legal Association.
ala
1
British
/ ˈeɪlə /
noun
-
zoology a wing or flat winglike process or structure, such as a part of some bones and cartilages
-
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
Ala.
2
British
abbreviation
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
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
Vocabulary lists containing ala
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Last month I also decided to practice manifestation ala influencer Amanda Francis, and as I delivered four large dishes to a client, I said to myself, “Money is flowing toward me in abundance.”
From Salon ● Dec. 16, 2024
The only question is whether he breaks the bank or opts for a more team-friendly deal ala Tom Brady to surround himself with more talent.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 15, 2022
Nicknames get coined for losses like these, ala the “Monday Night Massacre” of 2010.
From Washington Times ● Dec. 26, 2021
As you speak to them, you’re presented with dialogue choices and a timer, ala Telltale’s The Walking Dead.
From The Verge ● Sep. 22, 2021
WAKA: "E—o, heaha kau o ka po e ala nei?"
From The Hawaiian Romance Of Laieikawai by Martha Warren Beckwith
Now she’s returning the favor by asking a German state leader to grease the organizing wheels for the UAW at a Mercedes-Benz plant in Vance, Ala.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 5, 2026
He’s a civil rights lawyer who has argued death penalty cases at the Supreme Court, and executive director of the Equal Justice Initiative, a human rights organization in Montgomery, Ala.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 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
Then, I moved to Honolulu and started working at this giant mall there called Ala Moana.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 12, 2024
“Really? I thought if we studied the Ala Wai Canal . . .” She trails off.
From "Clairboyance" by Kristiana Kahakauwila
The strategy is similar to his Friday visit to Mobile, Ala., which is near Florida’s Panhandle.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 3, 2026
In Detroit, Indianapolis, Birmingham, Ala., and Louisville, Ky., it also takes fewer than 12 years.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 25, 2026
He found more than 100 in Huntsville, Ala., his hometown, and started DeFlock, a site to organize opposition and create a crowdsourced map of camera locations.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 26, 2026
Steve Pierce of Florence, Ala., was a State Farm agent for almost 50 years.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 17, 2026
Moved for Bridgeport, Ala., 7 A. M. All the serviceable horses reported to Lieutenant Harlow of the 12th Battery and were put in the teams.
From An Artilleryman's Diary by Jenkins Lloyd Jones
The A.L.A. experimented with arrangements for choosing the winners before opting, in the late 1930s, for a committee of 23 librarians who selected both the Newbery and Caldecott recipients.
From New York Times ● Dec. 12, 2019
Up until his remarks at the A.L.A. conference, Ungerer had co-existed in several worlds at once, working brilliantly in each.
From The New Yorker ● Feb. 4, 2015
But Ungerer crossed a line at the A.L.A. event, as the crowd pushed him—asking how dare he draw “Fornicon” and children’s books.
From The New Yorker ● Feb. 4, 2015
It was the first A.L.A. award for Mr. Alexander, a poet and novelist who has published 17 books.
From New York Times ● Feb. 2, 2015
He was president of the A.L.A. in 1893-94.
From The Library and Society Reprints of Papers and Addresses by Arthur Elmore Bostwick
The wildlife refuge is a wetland that provides nesting, feeding and resting habitat to the endangered Hawaiian stilt, known as aeo, and the Hawaiian coot or alae keokeo.
From Seattle Times ● Nov. 9, 2023
Their lintel beams should be placed high enough to make the height of the alae equal to their width.
From The Ten Books on Architecture by Vitruvius Pollio
Helpless and exhausted, the poor alae told Maui to take two hau sticks and rub them together.
From Legends of the Wailuku by Will Herwig
But to this day every alae bird wears the symbol of punishment for telling its secret—a tuft of red feathers on the top of its head.
From Legends of the Wailuku by Will Herwig
The base is reflected in 3 and straight in 2; the alae are small in 3, moderately large and rounded in 1, and wide and horizontal in 1.
From The Pagan Tribes of Borneo by Alfred C. (Alfred Cort) Haddon
Random Word
Spin the wheel and learn a new word!
Get a wordDefinitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
