el

[el]

See more synonyms for el on Thesaurus.com

noun

Informal. elevated railroad.

Origin of el

by shortening

el

[el]

noun

ell¹.

el

[el]

noun

the letter l.

ell

or el

[el]

noun

an extension usually at right angles to one end of a building.
elbow(def 5).
something that is L-shaped.

Origin of ell

First recorded in 1765–75; a spelling of the letter name, or by shortening of elbow

el.

elevation.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for el

Examples from the Web for el

Contemporary Examples of el

El Bulli, for instance, previously named the best restaurant in the world, shuttered its doors after only a few decades.
Inside The World’s 10 Oldest Restaurants
Justin Jones
December 20, 2014
In 2010, La Rana Dorada followed in Istmo's footsteps and opened a brewpub in the neighborhood of El Congrejo.
House of the Witch: The Renegade Craft Brewers of Panama
Jeff Campagna
November 30, 2014
So, Schmidt followed the gold rush to the El Paso mountains and claimed an area of mining land.
The Mole Man’s Tunnel to Nowhere
Nina Strochlic
November 28, 2014
“We are happy, as happy as before,” she said, according to El País.
Adiós to the Diva Duchess
Barbie Latza Nadeau
November 20, 2014
In the meantime, there is talk that with El Chapo in prison the Sinaloa cartel has a new leader.
Could El Chapo Go Free?
Michael Daly
November 19, 2014

Historical Examples of el

I described Bedr el Gemly as best I could, feature by feature.
It Happened in Egypt
C. N. Williamson
Boabdil el Chico had taken the field, at the head of a numerous army.
Leila, Complete
Edward Bulwer-Lytton
Of El Dorado, or his real reason for leaving the Yukon, he said nothing.
Murder Point
Coningsby Dawson
He was the will of destiny decreeing that Spurling should not reach El Dorado alive.
Murder Point
Coningsby Dawson
The Kaid el habs was bringing a courier, who carried an order for Israel's release.
The Scapegoat
Hall Caine

British Dictionary definitions for el

el

noun

US informal a shortened form of elevated railway or railroadSee elevated railway

ell

noun

an obsolete unit of length equal to approximately 45 inches

Word Origin for ell

Old English eln the forearm (the measure originally being from the elbow to the fingertips); related to Old High German elina, Latin ulna, Greek ōlenē

ell

noun

an extension to a building, usually at right angles and located at one end
a pipe fitting, pipe, or tube with a sharp right-angle bend

Word Origin for ell

C20: a spelling of L, indicating a right angle

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for el

American English abbreviation of elevated railroad, first recorded 1906 in O. Henry.

ell

n.2

type of building extension, 1773, American English; so called for resemblance to the shape of the alphabet letter.

ell

n.1

"unit of measure of 45 inches," Old English eln, originally "forearm, length of the arm" (as a measure, anywhere from a foot and a half to two feet), from PIE *el- (1) "elbow, forearm" (cf. Greek olene "elbow," Latin ulna, Armenian uln "shoulder," Sanskrit anih "part of the leg above the knee," Lithuanian alkune "elbow").

The exact distance varied, depending on whose arm was used as the base and whether it was measured from the shoulder to the fingertip or the wrist: the Scottish ell was 37.2 inches, the Flemish 27 inches. Latin ulna also was a unit of linear measure, and cf. cubit.

Whereas shee tooke an inche of liberty before, tooke an ell afterwardes [Humfrey Gifford, "A Posie of Gilloflowers," 1580].