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ya

1 American  
[yuh] / yə /

pronoun

Informal.
  1. you.

    Give me a hand, will ya?

  2. your.

    Where's ya brother?


ya 2 American  
[yah] / yɑ /

interjection

Informal.
  1. a variant of yeah.


3 American  
[yah] / yɑ /

noun

  1. the 28th letter of the Arabic alphabet.


YA 4 American  

abbreviation

  1. young adult.


Etymology

Origin of ya1

First recorded in 1820–25; a phonetic spelling representing the pronunciation of you and your in continuous rapid speech

Origin of 3

From Arabic

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.

It was nonetheless immortalized in Lightfoot’s lyrics: “At 7 p.m., a main hatchway caved in, he said, ‘Fellas, it’s been good to know ya.’

From Slate • Nov. 10, 2025

El sábado, por supuesto, las circunstancias serán completamente diferentes, ya que será el primer séptimo partido de una Serie Mundial desde 2019.

From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 1, 2025

While filming her scenes, she kept a note in her pocket that read: "Suzanne, Love ya!"

From BBC • Oct. 22, 2025

“Man you can’t get No pardon running ya mouth like that,” he wrote on Instagram.

From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 7, 2025

“This time I think I’ll tell ya where we’re headed,” she continues, lowering the volume of “Boogie Wonderland.”

From "Clean Getaway" by Nic Stone