dia-
a prefix occurring in loanwords from Greek (diabetes; dialect) and used, in the formation of compound words, to mean “passing through” (diathermy), “thoroughly,” “completely” (diagnosis), “going apart” (dialysis), and “opposed in moment” (diamagnetism).
Origin of dia-
1- Also especially before a vowel, di-.
Other definitions for dia. (2 of 2)
diameter.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use dia- in a sentence
But the DIA assessment is based on two important assumptions.
The DIA assessment, this source said, focused largely on the damage done to the military.
As Virginia Postrel has written, in fiscal 2012, the DIA drew just 498,000 visits, or “barely 1,000 more than it drew in 1928.”
“The DIA was always more forward leaning on this,” one U.S. official said.
From the elementary form de, di, or da, one traces ramifications such as the Celtic dia or duw meaning a god.
Archaic England | Harold Bayley
A pesar de la caida de Valencia, parece claro al mundo, que las cosas del enemigo estan andando de pejor a pejor cada dia.
Wanderings in South America | Charles WatertonDiabolus dicitur a dia, quod est duo, et bolos morsus; quasi dupliciter mordens; quia ldit hominem in corpore et anima.
(meaning your substance): which is an exact translation of the equally common Irish wish Go medaighe Dia dhuit.
English As We Speak It in Ireland | P. W. JoyceThe established derivation of Aphrodite dia ten tou athrou genesin may be accepted on the authority of Hesiod.
Cratylus | Plato
British Dictionary definitions for dia-
through, throughout, or during: diachronic
across: diactinic
apart: diacritic
(in botany) at right angles: diatropism
in opposite or different directions: diamagnetism
Origin of dia-
1Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Scientific definitions for dia-
A prefix meaning through or across, as in diameter, the length of a line going through a circle.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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