-
a
aindefinite articlenot any particular or certain one of a class or group.
-
A
Anounthe first letter of the English alphabet, a vowel.
-
Å
Åangstrom.
-
a'
a'adjectiveall.
-
a-
a-a reduced form of the Old English preposition on, meaning “on,” “in,” “into,” “to,” “toward,” preserved before a noun in a prepositional phrase, forming a predicate adjective or an adverbial element (afoot; abed; ashore; aside; away ), or before an adjective (afar; aloud; alow ), as a moribund prefix with a verb (acknowledge ), and in archaic and dialectal use before a present participle in -ing (set the bells aringing ); and added to a verb stem with the force of a present participle (ablaze; agape; aglow; astride; and originally,awry ).
-
-a
-aa plural ending of nouns borrowed from Greek and Latin.
-
A-
A-atomic (used in combination).
-
a.
a.abbreviationyear.
-
A.
A.abbreviationyear.
-
a–
a–A prefix meaning “without” or “not” when forming an adjective (such as amorphous, without form, or atypical, not typical), and “absence of” when forming a noun (such as arrhythmia, absence of rhythm). Before a vowel or h it becomes an– (as in anhydrous, anoxia).
a
1 Americanindefinite article
-
not any particular or certain one of a class or group.
a man; a chemical; a house.
-
a certain; a particular.
one at a time; two of a kind; A Miss Johnson called.
-
another; one typically resembling.
a Cicero in eloquence; a Jonah.
-
one (used before plural nouns that are preceded by a quantifier singular in form): a hundred men (comparehundreds of men ); a dozen times (comparedozens of times ).
-
indefinitely or nonspecifically (used with adjectives expressing number).
a great many years; a few stars.
-
one (used before a noun expressing quantity).
a yard of ribbon; a score of times.
-
any; a single.
not a one.
preposition
preposition
auxiliary verb
abbreviation
noun
-
A's,
plural
-
As,
plural
-
a's,
plural
-
as
plural
-
the first letter of the English alphabet, a vowel.
-
any spoken sound represented by the letter A or a, as in bake, hat, father, or small.
-
something having the shape of an A .
-
a written or printed representation of the letter A or a.
-
a device, as a printer's type, for reproducing the letter A or a.
idioms
-
not know from A to B, to know nothing; be ignorant.
-
from A to Z, from beginning to end; thoroughly; completely.
He knows the Bible from A to Z.
-
the first in order or in a series.
-
Sometimes a
-
(in some grading systems) a grade or mark, as in school or college, indicating the quality of a student's work as excellent or superior.
-
(in some school systems) a symbol designating the first semester of a school year.
-
-
Music.
-
the sixth tone in the scale of C major or the first tone in the relative minor scale, A minor.
-
a string, key, or pipe tuned to this tone.
-
a written or printed note representing this tone.
-
(in the fixed system of solmization) the sixth tone of the scale of C major, called la.
-
the tonality having A as the tonic note.
-
-
Physiology. a major blood group, usually enabling a person whose blood is of this type to donate blood to persons of group A or AB and to receive blood from persons of O or A.
-
Sometimes a the medieval Roman numeral for 50 or 500.
-
Chemistry. (formerly) argon.
-
Chemistry, Physics. mass number.
-
Biochemistry.
-
Logic. Also a universal affirmative.
-
British. a designation for a motion picture recommended as suitable for adults.
-
a proportional shoe width size, narrower than B and wider than AA.
-
a proportional brassiere cup size, smaller than B and larger than AA.
-
a quality rating for a corporate or municipal bond, lower than AA and higher than BBB.
adjective
abbreviation
abbreviation
abbreviation
-
about.
-
acre; acres.
-
active.
-
adjective.
-
alto.
-
ampere; amperes.
-
anonymous.
-
answer.
-
are; ares.
-
Baseball. assist; assists.
abbreviation
abbreviation
abbreviation
-
Absolute.
-
Academy.
-
acre; acres.
-
America.
-
American.
-
angstrom.
-
answer.
-
April.
-
Artillery.
symbol
-
music
-
a note having a frequency of 440 hertz ( A above middle C ) or this value multiplied or divided by any power of 2; the sixth note of the scale of C major
-
a key, string, or pipe producing this note
-
the major or minor key having this note as its tonic
-
-
a human blood type of the ABO group, containing the A antigen
-
(in Britain) a major arterial road
the A3 runs from London to Portsmouth
-
-
a film certified for viewing by anyone, but which contains material that some parents may not wish their children to see
-
( as modifier )
an A film
-
-
mass number
-
the number 10 in hexadecimal notation
-
cards ace
-
chem argon (now superseded by Ar )
-
ampere(s)
-
Also: at. ampere-turn
-
absolute (temperature)
-
(in circuit diagrams) ammeter
-
area
-
(in combination) atomic
an A-bomb
an A-plant
-
chem affinity
-
biochem adenine
-
logic a universal affirmative categorical proposition, such as all men are mortal: often symbolized as SaP Compare E I 2 O 1
-
-
a person whose job is in top management, or who holds a senior administrative or professional position
-
( as modifier ) See also occupation groupings
an A worker
-
abbreviation
determiner
-
used preceding a singular countable noun, if the noun is not previously specified or known
a dog
a terrible disappointment
-
used preceding a proper noun to indicate that a person or thing has some of the qualities of the one named
a Romeo
a Shylock
-
used preceding a noun or determiner of quantity
a cupful
a dozen eggs
a great many
to read a lot
-
used preceding a noun indicating a concrete or abstract thing capable of being divided
half a loaf
a quarter of a minute
-
each or every; per
once a day
fifty pence a pound
-
a certain; one
to change policy at a stroke
a Mr Jones called
-
(preceded by not) any at all
not a hope
symbol
-
acceleration
-
are(s) (metric measure of land)
-
atto-
-
chess See algebraic notation
noun
-
the first letter and first vowel of the modern English alphabet
-
any of several speech sounds represented by this letter, in English as in take, bag, calm, shortage, or cobra
-
Also called: alpha. the first in a series, esp the highest grade or mark, as in an examination
-
from start to finish, thoroughly and in detail
abbreviation
-
acre(s) or acreage
-
America(n)
-
answer
prefix
-
on; in; towards
afoot
abed
aground
aback
-
literary (used before a present participle) in the act or process of
come a-running
go a-hunting
-
in the condition or state of
afloat
alive
asleep
symbol
prefix
verb
preposition
determiner
Grammar
In both spoken and written English the choice of a1 or an 1 is determined by the initial sound of the word that follows. Before a consonant sound, a is used; before a vowel sound, an : a book, a rose; an apple, an opera. Problems arise occasionally when the following word begins with a vowel letter but actually starts with a consonant sound, or vice versa. Some words beginning with the vowel letter u and all words beginning with the vowel letters eu are pronounced with a beginning consonant sound, as if the first letter were y : a union; a European. Some other spellings that begin with a vowel letter may also stand for an initial consonant sound: a ewe; a ewer. The words one and once and all compounds of which they are the first element begin with a w sound: a one-room apartment; a once-famous actor. The names of the consonant letters f, h, l, m, n, r, s, and x are pronounced with a beginning vowel sound. When these letters are used as words or to form words, they are preceded by an : to rent an L-shaped studio; to fly an SST. The names of the vowel letter u and the semivowel letters w and y are pronounced with a beginning consonant sound. When used as words, they are preceded by a : a U-turn; The plumber installed a Y in the line. In some words beginning with the letter h, the h is not pronounced; the words actually begin with a vowel sound: an hour; an honor. When the h is strongly pronounced, as in a stressed syllable at the beginning of a word, it is preceded by a : a history of the Sioux; a hero sandwich. (In former times an was used before strongly pronounced h in a stressed first syllable: an hundred. ) Such adjectives as historic, historical, heroic, and habitual, which begin with an unstressed syllable and often with a silent or weakly pronounced h, are commonly preceded by an, especially in British English. But the use of a rather than an is widespread in both speech and writing: a historical novel; a habitual criminal. Hotel and unique are occasionally preceded by an, but this use is increasingly old-fashioned. Although in some dialects an has yielded to a in all cases, edited writing reflects usage as described above.
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of a1
First recorded in 1200–50; Middle English; originally preconsonantal phonetic variant of an 1
Origin of a2
Originally Middle English a, preconsonantal variant of on ( a- 1 ); confused with a 1
Origin of a3
Middle English; unstressed preconsonantal variant of of 1
Origin of a4
First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English; a phonetic variant of have
Origin of a5
First recorded in 1200–50; Middle English a, ha
Origin of a-12
Middle English, late Old English; cf. a 2, nowadays
Origin of a-13
Middle English; see a 3
Origin of a-14
Middle English; Old English a- (unstressed), ǣ-, ā-, ō- (stressed; see abb, woof 1, oakum), rarely or- ( see ordeal), ultimately from unattested Germanic uz- from unstressed Indo-European uss-, from ud-s (these latter two also unattested), akin to out; in some cases confused with a- 4, as in abridge
Origin of a-15
Middle English < Latin ā-, a- (variant of ab- ab- ); in some words < French a- < Latin ab-, as in abridge
Origin of a-16
Middle English, in some words < Middle French a- < Latin ad- prefix or ad preposition ( ad- ), as in abut; in others < Latin a- (variant of ad- ad- ), as in ascend
Origin of -a20
From Latin feminine ending -a, as Claudia, feminine of Claudius; see -a 2
Origin of -a21
Probably generalized from the -a of magnesia
Origin of a.23
< Latin annō, ablative of annus
Origin of a.24
From the Latin word ante
Origin of A.26
< Latin annō, ablative of annus
Origin of A.27
From the Latin word ante
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:
Wakefield Council initially declared a climate emergency seven years ago, with a goal of becoming carbon neutral by 2030.
From BBC ● Aug. 27, 2026
Before May, he was a businessman who would drive around his home city of Wakefield wishing the potholes could be fixed.
From BBC ● Aug. 27, 2026
Karl Johnson has had a whirlwind three months.
From BBC ● Aug. 27, 2026
Shadow justice secretary Nick Timothy represents Mildenhall which is home to a new Ukrainian-owned factory, which can make 1,000 drones a month.
From BBC ● Aug. 27, 2026
When Joey’s friends gather the belongings in her modest apartment, they discover a few record albums, many autographed theater and ballet posters, and nearly nine hundred books.
From "At Last She Stood" by Erin Entrada Kelly
![]()
A lunar eclipse happens when the Sun, Earth, and Moon become aligned, allowing the Moon to pass through Earth's shadow.
From BBC ● Aug. 27, 2026
"My mother had regrets about my birth, and I was driven to the edge psychologically," she wrote in her autobiography, "A Personal History of Polka Dots".
From Barron's ● Aug. 27, 2026
A year later, Murati fired Zoph and told employees that he had a history of performance, conduct and trust issues.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 27, 2026
A man who allegedly terrorized Philadelphia residents while wearing a creepy Halloween mask has been arrested in Las Vegas.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 27, 2026
She’s a kind, ratchet-music-loving goofball with an A average.
From "Split the Sky" by Marie Arnold
![]()
In the new study, the research team employed state-of-the-art cryo-electron microscopy techniques to capture nine different states associated with the lipid transport and determine structures at 2.4 to 3.1 Å resolution for these states.
From Science Daily ● Dec. 5, 2023
Danish, an often staccato language spoken by only about six million people and whose alphabet includes the letters Æ, Ø and Å, is perhaps an unlikely choice for pop’s next lingua franca.
From New York Times ● Apr. 19, 2023
Note: The length unit angstrom, Å, is often used to represent atomic-scale dimensions and is equivalent to 10−10 m.
From Textbooks ● Feb. 14, 2019
At the first epoch, all deviations from the blackbody spectrum are below about 10% in the range 3,500 Å–20,000 Å, indicating that the fit is very satisfactory.
From Nature ● Oct. 15, 2017
Here we present the 3.7 Å resolution cryo-electron microscopy structure of ZIKV, and show that the overall architecture of the virus is similar to that of other flaviviruses.
From Nature ● Apr. 18, 2016
Some songs—such as “A Guid New Year to ane a’ A’”—were widely recognized.
From National Geographic ● Dec. 27, 2023
Whether all this adds up to some big change a’ coming to City Hall, it’s too soon to say.
From Seattle Times ● May 24, 2023
Continue round into Glen Pean and up to the Bealach a’ Chaorainn.
From The Guardian ● Feb. 29, 2020
Bob Dylan’s “The Times They Are a’ Changin’” is “a little bit sad and I think it’s about friends,” he wrote.
From Washington Times ● Oct. 8, 2016
When April got back to the apartment, there was a' letter waiting for her.
From "The Egypt Game" by Zilpha Keatley Snyder
![]()
And Robert Heath was sort of a- adventurous entrepreneur of a neurologist and psychiatrist.
From Scientific American ● May 4, 2023
That giant thing of spices that looks like a-
From Salon ● Mar. 30, 2019
Average sizes are about 2.0 μm and 1.2 μm along the a- and c-axes, respectively. b, AFM height image and height profiles for the MFI nanosheets.
From Nature ● Mar. 14, 2017
The Israeli grandmaster plays the positional side of a Benko Gambit to perfection, building up great pressure on the a- and b-files while the great Benko bishop strafes the White position from g7.
From Washington Times ● May 12, 2015
The thin wooden door split with a- thunderous ciack beneath the heel of Shagga's boot.
From "A Clash of Kings" by George R.R. Martin
![]()
I don't think the "-e" should eliminate the existing "-o" and the "-a."
From Salon ● Sep. 26, 2022
During the scenes, partly I'd be thinking what an incredible job the set dressers had done, but there were shocking moments -a scene in Highgate cemetery with Nazi soldiers chilled me inside.
From BBC ● Feb. 20, 2017
He needs to grow up or get out -a cancer in the locker room.
From New York Times ● Jan. 9, 2017
But this much you can be sure of -a victory at that level of competition is truly a net positive for months, perhaps years, ahead.
From Washington Times ● May 25, 2016
Even the rushlight turned black -a black flame flaring above him ...
From "Wolf Brother" by Michelle Paver
![]()
"The All Blacks are a classy outfit, and they'll punish you if you're not on your A- game, and at times we weren't," admitted Irish skipper Dan Sheehan.
From BBC ● Jul. 18, 2026
“Mandalorian” got an average grade of A- from audiences, according to market research firm CinemaScore.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 24, 2026
A recent report card from Children Now, a nonprofit advocacy group, rated California a D on children’s access to preventive care, despite the state’s A- grade for ensuring children have coverage.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 26, 2024
Normally it’s sort of fun to count the A- , B-, and Z-listers shilling for mayonnaise and sneakers.
From Slate ● Feb. 12, 2024
In 1926 it was decided to build A- and B-blocks on the hill, and in 1929 they were completed, along with the chapel and mess hall.
From "Newjack: Guarding Sing Sing" by Ted Conover
![]()
This makes sense as 1 = loga a means a1 = a. which is true for any a.
From Textbooks ● May 6, 2020
Using a. and b. is the train speeding up or slowing down?
From Textbooks ● Mar. 30, 2016
Rewrite the integral in part a. as an equivalent integral in five other orders.
From Textbooks ● Mar. 30, 2016
Determine the equation and sketch the trace of the ring torus from a. on the xy-plane.
From Textbooks ● Mar. 30, 2016
That means tonight's high tide will come at 3:45 a. m.—we'll need to start searching soon!
From "Tiger Boy" by Mitali Perkins
![]()
An analysis of two genes showed that A. syrax is genetically distinct from its closest known relative, A. lepidogaster, as well as from every other recognized species in the group.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 24, 2026
Dan A. Sullivan -- or, as he puts it, the original Sullivan.
From Barron's ● Aug. 24, 2026
B. of A. says history suggests the current long-term growth forecast suggests 7% downside risk for the S&P 500 over the next 12 months.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 19, 2026
“The message to everyone in the police department is keep your mouth shut,” said David A. Harris, a law professor at University of Pittsburgh and an expert on police misconduct.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 11, 2026
One of them bore the name of George A. Custer, the commanding officer of the U.S.
From "In the Footsteps of Crazy Horse" by Joseph Marshall III
![]()
You know, that’s actually the easiest of all things, if you look, cause it’s such a–
From Slate ● Jan. 22, 2020
The montage ends with a honest rap from Issa: “I don’t want to be here, but my ex won’t take me back. So my broken a– is here, small-talking over apps.”
From Washington Post ● Jul. 28, 2017
We created a– civilian review board, gave them their own detectives.
From Time ● Jan. 17, 2016
MELBER: Now your path here– involved time as a– as a lawyer and a prosecutor.
From MSNBC ● Feb. 12, 2015
But whatever happens, you’ll 240 believe I’ve done my best, won’t you?–even if I’m not a– Promise me straight, you’ll lock up tight every night.”
From Into the Primitive by Robert Ames Bennett
After all, he already had a job waiting for him even without straight A’s.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 24, 2026
In May, Harvard University faculty voted to approve a 20% cap on the number of A’s per undergraduate course in an effort to curb grade inflation.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 11, 2026
The A’s plan to move into a new ballpark in Las Vegas in 2028, the next time the teams are scheduled to face off.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 30, 2026
In the same way a dismal class performance on a business school exam will still yield some A’s, curves also apply in the stock market when a company’s results aren’t necessarily jumping off the page.
From Barron's ● Jun. 29, 2026
“I have A’s in school Puerto Rico. I lern good. I no seven gray girl.”
From "When I Was Puerto Rican" by Esmeralda Santiago
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As her success blossomed, Kusama’s fiberglass sculptures of flowers and pumpkins got bigger, her palette brightened and her installations became more kaleidoscopic.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 27, 2026
"As long as I have the strength and the days ahead of me, I will continue doing this work," said Mushtaq Ahmad, 75, who has been weaving carpets for 50 years.
From Barron's ● Aug. 27, 2026
As open-source artificial intelligence gains momentum, Nvidia may be making a sizable acquisition.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 27, 2026
As crisis intervention deputies combed through the juvenile’s online activity and searched his residence, they found he had an online connection with an Illinois juvenile with similarly “concerning interests,” the Sheriff’s Office said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 27, 2026
As if asking for help comes easily for you.
From "Legendary Frybread Drive-In" by Cynthia Leitich Smith
![]()
Like other Romance languages, Spanish divides most endings of nouns into masculine o’s or feminine a’s.
From Washington Times ● Dec. 12, 2021
And then, every fourth January, we’re suddenly expected to say it, to spell it, to know where to place the u’s and a’s.
From New York Times ● Jan. 19, 2017
It kept reading my a's as g's or u's, my b's as d's and sprinkling periods liberally throughout my text.
From Time Magazine Archive
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But there is no doubt who is the original source of the line, and his last name is spelled with two a's.
From Time Magazine Archive
![]()
Dr. Finch rolled out the last name in Maycomb County accents: long a’s, i s, and a pause between syllables.
From "Go Set a Watchman: A Novel" by Harper Lee
![]()
Ross Lydell, spokesperson from the Civil Aviation Authority, said the growth in passenger numbers in Scotland was generally higher than across the UK as a whole.
From BBC ● Aug. 27, 2026
But Herrera says his return to Real Zaragoza on a free transfer from Boca is just as important as any move he has made in his career.
From BBC ● Aug. 27, 2026
Ahead of the election, the Reform group hadn't reached a "settled view" as to what they thought should happen to the site.
From BBC ● Aug. 27, 2026
It hasn't all been plain sailing - already two councillors, Steve Lewis and Rhys Carr, have left Reform to sit as independents, and a third, Nick Farmer, has been suspended by the party.
From BBC ● Aug. 27, 2026
Not just the soldiers’ actions, but their appearance as well.
From "At Last She Stood" by Erin Entrada Kelly
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Definitions 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.