Showing results for "y"

• a variation of -ie.

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• y
  y

  an unknown quantity.
• Y
  Y

  noun

  the 25th letter of the English alphabet, a semivowel.
• y-
  y-

  a prefix occurring in certain obsolete words (ywis ) and especially in archaic past participles.
• -y
  -y

  a native English suffix of adjectives meaning “characterized by or inclined to” the substance or action of the word or stem to which the suffix is attached: juicy; grouchy; rumbly; dreamy. Sometimes used to mean “allowing, fostering, or bringing about” the specified action: sippy.
• y.
  y.

  abbreviation

  yard; yards.
• Y.
  Y.

  abbreviation

  YMCA or YWCA

y

¹ American  

Symbol, Mathematics.

1. an unknown quantity.

2. (in Cartesian coordinates) the y-axis.

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Y ² American  

[wahy] / waɪ /

Or y

noun

• Y's,
  plural
• Ys,
  plural
• y's,
  plural
• ys
  plural

1. the 25th letter of the English alphabet, a semivowel.

2. any spoken sound represented by the letter Y or y, as in yet, city, or rhythm.

3. something having the shape of a Y .

4. a written or printed representation of the letter Y or y.

5. a device, as a printer's type, for reproducing the letter Y or y.

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Y ³ American  

[wahy] / waɪ /

abbreviation

1. Informal. the Y, the YMCA, YWCA, YMHA, or YWHA.

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Y ⁴ American  

abbreviation

1. yen.

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Y ⁵ American  

Symbol.

1. the 25th in order or in a series.

2. (sometimes lowercase) the medieval Roman numeral for 150.

3. Electricity. admittance. Sometimes y

4. Chemistry. yttrium.

5. Biochemistry. tyrosine.

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y- ⁶ American  

Also i-

1. a prefix occurring in certain obsolete words (ywis ) and especially in archaic past participles.

   yclad.

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-y ⁷ American  

1. a native English suffix of adjectives meaning “characterized by or inclined to” the substance or action of the word or stem to which the suffix is attached: juicy; grouchy; rumbly; dreamy. Sometimes used to mean “allowing, fostering, or bringing about” the specified action: sippy.

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-y ⁸ American  

Also -ie

1. a noun-forming suffix with a variety of functions in contemporary English, added to monosyllabic bases to create words that are almost always informal. Its earliest use, probably still productive, was to form endearing or familiar names or common nouns from personal names, other nouns, and adjectives (Billy; Susie; birdie; doggie; granny; sweetie; tummy ). The hypocoristic feature is absent in recent coinages, however, which are simply informal and sometimes pejorative (boonies; cabby; groupie; hippy; looie; Okie; preemie; preppy; rookie ). Another function of -y2 -ie is the formation from adjectives of nouns that denote exemplary or extreme instances of the quality named by the adjective (baddie; biggie; cheapie; toughie ), sometimes focusing on a restricted, usually unfavorable sense of the adjective (sharpie; sickie; whitey ). A few words in which the informal character of -y2 -ie has been lost are now standard in formal written English (goalie; movie ).

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-y ⁹ American  

1. a suffix of various origins used in the formation of action nouns from verbs (inquiry ), also found in other abstract nouns.

   carpentry; infamy.

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y. ¹⁰ American  

abbreviation

1. yard; yards.

2. year; years.

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Y ¹ British  

symbol

1. any unknown, unspecified, or variable factor, number, person, or thing

2. chem yttrium

3. currency

   1. yen

   2. yuan

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y ² British  

/ waɪ /

noun

1. the 25th letter of the modern English alphabet

2. a speech sound represented by this letter, in English usually a semivowel, as in yawn, or a vowel, as in symbol or shy

3. 1. something shaped like a Y

   2. ( in combination )

      a Y-cross

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-y ³ British  

suffix

1. (from nouns) characterized by; consisting of; filled with; relating to; resembling

   sunny

   sandy

   smoky

   classy

2. (from verbs) tending to; acting or existing as specified

   leaky

   shiny

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-y ⁴ British  

suffix

1. denoting smallness and expressing affection and familiarity

   a doggy

   a granny

   Jamie

2. a person or thing concerned with or characterized by being

   a groupie

   a fatty

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-y ⁵ British  

suffix

1. (from verbs) indicating the act of doing what is indicated by the verbal element

   inquiry

2. (esp with combining forms of Greek, Latin, or French origin) indicating state, condition, or quality

   geography

   jealousy

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y ⁶ British  

symbol

1. the y- axis or a coordinate measured along the y- axis in a Cartesian coordinate system

2. an algebraic variable

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Y. ⁷ British  

abbreviation

1. YMCA or YWCA

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y. ⁸ British  

abbreviation

1. year

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• Y's
  plural
• Ys
  plural
• y's
  plural
• ys
  plural

Etymology

Origin of y-⁶

Middle English y-, i- (reduced variant a- ), Old English ge-, prefix with perfective, intensifying, or collective force; cognate with Old Frisian, Old Saxon ge-, gi-, Gothic ga-, German ge-; compare perhaps Latin com- com-

Origin of -y⁷

Old English -ig; cognate with German -ig; compare perhaps Latin -icus, Greek -ikos

Origin of -y⁸

From late Middle English (Scots), originally in names; of uncertain origin; baby and puppy, now felt as having this suffix, may be of different derivation

Origin of -y⁹

Representing Latin -ia, -ium; Greek -ia, -eia, -ion; French -ie; German -ie

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

y Y y- -y y. Y. Y's Ys y's ys

A clash between two Caribbean titans — Romeo Santos and Don Omar — ‘Ella y Yo’ was a betrayal song for the ages.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 1, 2026

The food alone made the day’s mileage seem like a bargain: octopus in Galicia, Arzúa-Ulloa cheese from a farmers market or milk-fed lamb that made me forgive every hill in Castilla y León.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 25, 2026

Spanish police said they had arrested a man for setting off a fire in Castilla y Leon region by using farm machinery in breach of a ban in the tinderbox conditions.

From Barron's ● Jul. 25, 2026

Paris St-Germain's Ruiz, who started the final against Argentina, and Barcelona's Gavi wore their gold medals as they were greeted by Los Palacios y Villafranca officials and a large crowd.

From BBC ● Jul. 23, 2026

“Anthony Márez,” I replied, “Antonio Juan Márez y Luna,” I added in respect to my mother.

From "Bless Me, Ultima" by Rudolfo Anaya

Tesla's recall involves 2.9 million domestically-made units of its Model 3 and Model Y electric cars and begins on September 25.

From Barron's ● Aug. 24, 2026

Tesla just made the best thing about the Model Y optional.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 22, 2026

Since Tesla unveiled its first ride-hailing operation last year, the company has relied on Model Y electric vehicles to carry out trips.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 21, 2026

Researchers have often assumed that differences between male and female immune systems are largely driven by the X and Y sex chromosomes.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 20, 2026

Dreading the thought of spending another night in some cheap hotel if I could not get a room at the Y, I considered hiding in the church and sleeping there in one of the pews.

From "Black Like Me" by John Howard Griffin

The y- axis represents the number of gallons of gas in the truck’s gas tank.

From Textbooks ● Apr. 22, 2020

Since the x- and y- intercepts are the same point, we need two more points to graph the line.

From Textbooks ● Apr. 22, 2020

Choose any three values for x and then solve for the corresponding y- values.

From Textbooks ● Apr. 22, 2020

Use the equation of the line to find the y- intercept of the line, let x = 0 and solve for y.

From Textbooks ● Apr. 22, 2020

The prefix y-, representing the extremely common A.S.

From English Dialects From the Eighth Century to the Present Day by Walter W. (Walter William) Skeat

It’s another day ending in -y so Fortnite is having a new crossover event.

From The Verge ● Aug. 12, 2021

There has been a bit of inconsistency with the spelling of Zoey’s name, but it is with a -y.

From The Guardian ● Jan. 3, 2020

Well-established steps test for symmetry about an axis: replace x or y with -x or -y and then simplify the equation.

From The New Yorker ● Oct. 10, 2018

As for her name, did the author mean to suggest a diminutive or nickname—in English nomenclature, the -y ending is typical of both—or perhaps chokkie, nursery slang for a chocolate treat?

From Slate ● Sep. 8, 2015

Pet′iolar, -y, pertaining to, or growing upon, a petiole; Pet′iolāte, -d, Pet′ioled, growing on a petiole.—n.

From Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 3 of 4: N-R) by Various

Find x and y. x = Dx, y = Dy.

From Textbooks ● May 6, 2020

Commander Joseph Jerome Sher in the Naval Medical Bulletin sidesteps the whole open *y. closed debate, recommends using the X-ray technique for 30 days in each cyst case before resorting to surgery.

From Time Magazine Archive

This identification has been corroborated by Dr. Philip H. Krutzsch, University of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and extends the known range of the subspecies M. y. yumanensis approximately 300 miles northeastward in Utah.

From Additional Records and Extensions of Known Ranges of Mammals from Utah by Stephen D. Durrant

All y are x, and all x' are y. i.e.

From The Game of Logic by Lewis Carroll

The principal abbreviations used in these pages are: b. standing for born. m. standing for married. d. standing for died. y. standing for young.

From The Stephens Family A Genealogy of the Descendants of Joshua Stevens by Alonzo Smith Bower

I’m very satisfied with the Tesla Model 3 and Model Y. One-pedal driving, superb handling, confident acceleration and excellent stopping power if needed spoil you.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 12, 2026

Kevin Y. Fu wrote in his sentencing memo.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 16, 2026

Or, when the bot feels sassy: “Not X. Not Y. But Z.”

From Slate ● Mar. 20, 2026

About the author: Mark Y. Rosenberg is a visiting scholar in UC Berkeley Department of Political Science and the founder of GeoQuant.

From Barron's ● Jan. 22, 2026

—A. Y. “I’m going to leave that up for the rest of the semester,” he said.

From "Looking for Alaska" by John Green

As for millennials, if you’re looking to draw that line for the current crop of thirty-to-fortysomethings, the point that separates Gen Y’s art and all that came before, look no further than Lena Dunham.

From Salon ● Aug. 30, 2026

The Model Y’s human-machine interface doesn’t include a typical gear selector.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 22, 2026

The R2 exploits the Model Y’s greatest weakness.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 27, 2026

He lauded the Model Y’s best-selling status at the meeting and promoted the Cybertruck, his electric pickup, despite actions by regulators earlier this week to recall nearly all Cybertrucks on the road.

From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 21, 2025

Thanks to his long acquaintanceship with the locker room attendant, he and Maniac were privileged to continue using the Y’s shower facilities at their pleasure.

From "Maniac Magee" by Jerry Spinelli

Still, Tesla could be raising prices because it sees strong demand for higher-end Model Ys.

From Barron's ● May 17, 2026

Nvidia became the first $4 trillion company by selling the silicon equivalent of fast, powerful and expensive Ferrari sports cars, but now the world wants Priuses and Model Ys.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 16, 2026

That is less than half the 29,291 Model Ys sold over the same period.

From Reuters ● Nov. 15, 2023

EVs are scarce here in Milan’s inner city, with a smattering of Tesla Model 3s and Ys and shoebox-sized Smart and Citroën Ami EVs.

From Seattle Times ● May 28, 2023

And all along the rooftop of the structure stood twelve-foot-tall steel posts, a picket line of uppercase Ys, each of them strung with razor wire.

From "100 Sideways Miles" by Andrew Smith

We have the y’s on the right and the constants on the left.

From Textbooks ● Apr. 22, 2020

I should have typed ‘Hey’ with two y’s, not just one!’

From The Guardian ● Jan. 10, 2016

“I should have typed ‘Hey’ with two y’s, not just one!”

From New York Times ● Jul. 6, 2015

I could add and subtract and multiply and divide, but I entered the wilderness when words became equations and x’s and y’s.

From The New Yorker ● Jan. 26, 2015

She spoke with an Ayorthaian accent, smacking her lips after the letter m and pronouncing her l’s as y’s.

From "Ella Enchanted" by Gail Carson Levine

The original is as follows: “By commyxstion and mellyng furst wiþ danes and afterward wiþ Normans in menye þe contray longage ys apeyred, and som vseþ strange wlaffyng, chyteryng, harrying and garryng, grisbittyng.”

From The Guardian ● Aug. 15, 2019

“He sa ys he kno ws,” Helen told Theresa.

From "Typical American" by Gish Jen

And than experience to me came, And seyde, kateryne, I the ensuer, Thys lady ys but seldom fro home.

From Medieval English Nunneries c. 1275 to 1535 by Eileen Power

What tounge can speake ye Vertues of ys Creature?

From The Portsmouth Road and Its Tributaries To-Day and in Days of Old by Charles G. (Charles George) Harper

And so hyt ys an holy thyng To bene in habyte reguler; Than, as by owtewarde array in semyng, Beth so wythin, my ladyes dere.

From Medieval English Nunneries c. 1275 to 1535 by Eileen Power

Related Words

• corner
• edge
• intersection
• slant
• twist