ала

See also: яла, Аля, Ала, and Appendix:Variations of "ala"

Abkhaz

Etymology 1

From Proto-Abkhaz-Abaza *lá (“dog”).

Noun

а-ла́ • (a-lá)

1. dog

Etymology 2

From Proto-Abkhaz-Abaza *lá (“eye”).

Noun

а́-ла • (á-la)

1. eye (organ of sight)

Bulgarian

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ˈaɫɐ]

• Audio:

  (file)

Conjunction

ала • (ala)

1. but (conjunction)

Usage notes

This conjunction is often used in literature and children's stories, and may contribute to an ominous or moralizing tone.

Chechen

Etymology

From Proto-Nakh.

Verb

ала • (ala)

1. to say

Dolgan

Noun

ала • (ala)

1. a strap in a reindeer yoke
2. reindeer yoke

Eastern Mari

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ɑˈlɑ/
• Rhymes: -ɑ
• Hyphenation: а‧ла

Etymology 1

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Conjunction

ала • (ala)

1. maybe, probably, could be
2. hardly, doubtful, who knows
3. sometimes... sometimes, either... or, now... now

   ала йӱр йӱреш, ала лум лумеш

   ala jür jüreš, ala lum lumeš

   sometimes it rains, sometimes it snows

4. or

   эрла толам ала уке, ом пале

   erla tolam ala uke, om paĺe

   I'll come tomorrow or I won't, I don't know

5. about, roughly

Particle

ала • (ala)

1. emphatic particle

   шонет мо тый мыйым ала?

   šońet mo tyj myjym ala?

   well, are you thinking about me?

Derived terms

pronouns

• ала-кӧ (ala-kö)

 

Etymology 2

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Noun

ала • (ala)

1. pitch, tar, resin

   Synonym: киш (kiš)

Declension

Declension of ала
	singular	plural
nominative	ала (ala)	ала-влак (ala-vlak)
accusative	алам (alam)	ала-влакым (ala-vlakym)
genitive	алан (alan)	ала-влакын (ala-vlakyn)
dative	алалан (alalan)	ала-влаклан (ala-vlaklan)
comitative	алаге (alage)	ала-влакге (ala-vlakge)
comparative	алала (alala)	ала-влакла (ala-vlakla)
inessive	алаште (alašte)	ала-влакыште (ala-vlakyšte)
illative (short)	алаш (alaš)	ала-влакыш (ala-vlakyš)
illative (long)	алашке (alaške)	ала-влакышке (ala-vlakyške)
lative	алаш (alaš)	ала-влакеш (ala-vlakeš)

Possessed forms of ала
	singular	plural
1st person	алам (alam)	алана (alana)
2nd person	алат (alat)	алада (alada)
3rd person	алаже (alaže)	алашт (alašt)

References

• J. Bradley et al. (2023) “ала”, in The Mari Web Project: Mari-English Dictionary, University of Vienna

Evenki

Adjective

ала • (ala)

1. sweet

Ingush

Etymology 1

Akin to Chechen алу (alu).

Noun

ала • (ala)

1. flame

Etymology 2

From Proto-Nakh.

Verb

ала • (ala)

1. to say

Macedonian

Etymology

Inherited from Proto-Slavic *xala, unless borrowed from Ottoman Turkish آلا (ala, “spotted, variegated”), euphemistic for ییلان (yılan, “snake”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ˈaɫa]

• Audio:

  (file)

• Hyphenation: а‧ла

Noun

а́ла • (ála) f (plural а́ли)

1. (archaic) dragon (mythical creature)

   Synonyms: а́ждер (ážder), змеј (zmej), дра́кон (drákon)

2. (figurative) monster

Declension

Declension of ала

	singular	plural
indefinite	ала	али
definite unspecified	алата	алите
definite proximal	алава	аливе
definite distal	алана	алине
vocative	ало	али

References

• Knüppel, Michael (2009) “Zu serbo-kroatisch hȁla ∼ ȁla ‘Drache’”, in Wiener Slavistisches Jahrbuch‎^[1] (in German), volume 55, pages 179–183
• “ала” in Дигитален речник на македонскиот јазик (Digitalen rečnik na makedonskiot jazik) [Digital dictionary of the Macedonian language] − drmj.eu

Moksha

Etymology

From Proto-Mordvinic *alə, from Proto-Uralic *ëla. Perhaps by error “ala”, in [ETY] Eesti etümoloogiasõnaraamat [Estonian Etymological Dictionary] (in Estonian) (online version), Tallinn: Eesti Keele Sihtasutus (Estonian Language Foundation), 2012 lists Moksha ал (al, “egg”) as a cognate of Estonian ala. Compare, however, Estonian alus (“foundation”), Livonian alā (“down; under”), alli (“foundation; underside”), among others. Veršinin, however, lists “the lower part of something” as an alternative sense for the word ал (al) in both Mordvinic languages. He speculates that the “egg” sense is secondary to the “underside” sense (as eggs are found under birds), a possible taboo replacement, as collecting eggs in the spring was very important in historic times.

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /ɑlɑ/

Postposition

ала • (ala)

1. under
   • O. Je. Poljakov (1995) Učimsja govoritʹ po-mokšanski [Let's learn to speak Moksha], Saransk: Mordovskoje knižnoje izdatelʹstvo, →ISBN, page 135

     кудть ала

     kudť ala

     under the house

Usage notes

This postposition is used with the genitive case.

Russian

Pronunciation

• ала́: IPA^(key): [ɐˈɫa]
• а́ла: IPA^(key): [ˈaɫə]

Adjective

ала́ or а́ла • (alá or ála)

1. short feminine singular of а́лый (ályj)

Serbo-Croatian

Etymology 1

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ǎla/

Adverb

а̀ла (Latin spelling àla)

1. (used for emphasis, or as an intensifier) expression of awe, surprise, dismay, etc.

   Ала је било лепо! ― It sure was nice!

   Aла лажеш! ― Oh, you're lying!

Etymology 2

Borrowed from Ottoman Turkish آلا (ala, “spotted, variegated”).

Alternative forms

• хала

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ǎːla/

Adjective

а́ла or а̀ла or а̏ла (Latin spelling ála or àla or ȁla)

1. piebald, spotted

Etymology 3

Inherited from Proto-Slavic *xala, unless borrowed from Ottoman Turkish آلا (ala, “spotted, variegated”), euphemistic for a snake.

Alternative forms

• хала

Noun

а́ла or а̀ла or а̏ла f (Latin spelling ála or àla or ȁla)

1. dragon, type of mythical creature similar to dragon

See also

• аждаха
• змај

 

Talysh

Adjective

ала

1. Cyrillic spelling of ala

Yakut

Etymology 1

From Proto-Turkic *āla (“variegated”). Akin to Turkish ala.

Adjective

ала • (ala)

1. piebald

   Synonym: эриэн (erien, “variegated”)

Etymology 2

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Cognate with the Dolgan term above.

Noun

ала • (ala)

1. (dialectal) strap (for a reindeer sled)