-a
See also: Appendix:Variations of "a"
Contents
EnglishEdit
Etymology 1Edit
From the homographic case endings of the nominative, accusative, and vocative forms of numerous Latin neuter second declension nouns.
PronunciationEdit
- (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /ɑ/, /ə/
- (General American) IPA(key): /ɑ/, /ə/
SuffixEdit
-a
Usage notesEdit
- Whereas the regular pluralization in English involves adding -s or -es, English words derived from a Latin/Greek where the Latin/Greek would pluralize from -on (Greek) or -um (Latin) to -a do not always do so. Usage of -a instead of -s differs between words: sometimes the two are interchangeable (e.g. memorandums/memoranda, polyhedrons/polyhedra), sometimes one is far more common than the other (e.g. neurons over neura, automata over automatons), and sometimes one is completely absent from usage (e.g. bacteria over bacteriums, dendrons over dendra)
Derived termsEdit
Terms which feature the -a suffix
|
From -um: See also: -um |
From -on: |
See alsoEdit
TranslationsEdit
Latinate plural grammatical number suffix
Etymology 2Edit
Possibly due to the propensity in some non-rhotic dialects to pronounce words ending in -er as if they ended in an -a.
PronunciationEdit
- (General American) IPA(key): /æ/
- (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /æ/
SuffixEdit
-a
- (Northern England) Same as -er in Standard English.
- me fatha was a corka burna doon the shipyard — “My father was a corker burner at the shipyard.”
- (Black English and slang) Used to replace -er in nouns.
- gangsta — “gangster”
- brotha — “brother”
See alsoEdit
Etymology 3Edit
Representing the nominative singular case ending of Latin first-declension feminine nouns.
PronunciationEdit
- (Received Pronunciation) enPR: ə, IPA(key): /ə/
- (General American) IPA(key): /ə/
SuffixEdit
- Marks singular nouns, with a foundation in Greek or Latin, often implying femininity, especially when contrasted with words terminating in -us.
SynonymsEdit
Derived termsEdit
Etymology 4Edit
PronunciationEdit
- (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /ə/
- (General American) IPA(key): /ə/
SuffixEdit
-a
Etymology 5Edit
Shortened version of verb have.
PronunciationEdit
- (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /ə/
- (General American) IPA(key): /ə/
SuffixEdit
-a
Etymology 6Edit
Representing Italian, Portuguese, and Spanish feminine nouns.
PronunciationEdit
- (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /ə/
- (General American) IPA(key): /ə/
SuffixEdit
-a
- Marks nouns, with a foundation in Italian, Spanish, or Portuguese, implying femininity.
Etymology 7Edit
Added to lines of poetry and verse to maintain metrics.
PronunciationEdit
- (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /ə/
- (General American) IPA(key): /ə/
SuffixEdit
-a
- Added for metrical reasons to poetry and verse
Etymology 8Edit
Shortened version of preposition of.
PronunciationEdit
- (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /ə/
- (General American) IPA(key): /ə/
SuffixEdit
-a
Etymology 9Edit
Shortened version of verb to.
PronunciationEdit
- (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /ə/
- (General American) IPA(key): /ə/
SuffixEdit
-a
ReferencesEdit
- Lesley Brown (editor), The Shorter Oxford English Dictionary, 5th edition (Oxford University Press, 2003 [1933], ISBN 978-0-19-860575-7), page 1
- Christine A. Lindberg (editor), The Oxford College Dictionary, 2nd edition (Spark Publishing, 2007 [2002], ISBN 978-1-4114-0500-4), page 1
DutchEdit
EsperantoEdit
EtymologyEdit
From feminine singular adjectives (and nouns) of the Romance languages, such as French ma, Italian mia, Spanish mía, fría.
SuffixEdit
-a
- Related to, in the manner of, of. (Ending for all adjectives in Esperanto.)
- belo; bela — “beauty; beautiful”
- dekstro; dekstra — “the right direction (as opposed to left); to the right”
- vero; vera — “truth; true”
- Belonging to, of. (Ending for all possessive pronouns in Esperanto.)
- mia — “of me, my”
- via — “of you, your”
- ilia — “of them, their”
- -kind of. (Ending of all correlatives of kind in Esperanto.)
- kia — “what kind of”
- tia — “that kind of”
- nenia — “no kind of”
Derived termsEdit
belonging to, of (Ending for all possessive pronouns in Esperanto.)
FinnishEdit
Alternative formsEdit
- (in words with front vowel harmony) -ä
Etymology 1Edit
From Proto-Finnic *-da, from the Proto-Uralic ablative case *-ta. A variant form *-ta (whence Finnish -ta) was used after a syllable with secondary stress (suffixal gradation).
SuffixEdit
-a (front vowel harmony variant -ä)
- (case suffix) Forms the partitive case of nouns, adjectives, numbers and some pronouns.
Usage notesEdit
- This suffix is used after a short vowel or the plural marker -j-.
Etymology 2Edit
From Proto-Finnic *-dak. Historically, a form of a lative suffix.
SuffixEdit
-a (front vowel harmony variant -ä)
- (verbal suffix) Forms the short form of the first infinitive of verbs.
Usage notesEdit
- The first infinitive, short form, is the citation form of verbs.
See alsoEdit
FrenchEdit
HungarianEdit
PronunciationEdit
SuffixEdit
-a
DeclensionEdit
| Inflection (stem in long/high vowel, back harmony) | ||
|---|---|---|
| singular | plural | |
| nominative | -a | — |
| accusative | -át | — |
| dative | -ának | — |
| instrumental | -ával | — |
| causal-final | -áért | — |
| translative | -ává | — |
| terminative | -áig | — |
| essive-formal | -aként | — |
| essive-modal | -ául | — |
| inessive | -ában | — |
| superessive | -án | — |
| adessive | -ánál | — |
| illative | -ába | — |
| sublative | -ára | — |
| allative | -ához | — |
| elative | -ából | — |
| delative | -áról | — |
| ablative | -ától | — |
Usage notesEdit
- (possessive suffix) Variants:
See alsoEdit
IcelandicEdit
SuffixEdit
-a
- Used to form verbs from nouns.
- Used to form adverbs from adjectives.
Derived termsEdit
Derived terms
See alsoEdit
IdoEdit
SuffixEdit
-a
Derived termsEdit
Usage notesEdit
One may elide the final a of the adjectives, but with the condition not to produce accumulation from the consonants. One advise to use the elision mainly with the derivatived adjectives and particularly when they finish with -al-(a).[1]
ReferencesEdit
ItalianEdit
SuffixEdit
-a
- Used, with a stem, to form the third-person singular present tense of -are verbs.
- Used, with a stem, to form the second-person singular imperative of -are verbs.
- Used, with a stem, to form the first-person singular, second-person singular and third-person singular present subjunctive of -ere verbs, and of those -ire verbs that do not insert "isc".
- Used, with a stem, to form the third-person singular imperative of -ere verbs, and of those -ire verbs that do not insert "isc".
LatinEdit
Etymology 1Edit
From Proto-Indo-European *-eh₂ (forming in this case masculine nouns).
PronunciationEdit
SuffixEdit
-a m (genitive -ae); first declension
- suffixed to the roots of verbs, forms masculine agent nouns
DeclensionEdit
| Case | Singular | Plural |
|---|---|---|
| nominative | -a | -ae |
| genitive | -ae | -ārum |
| dative | -ae | -īs |
| accusative | -am | -ās |
| ablative | -ā | -īs |
| vocative | -a | -ae |
SynonymsEdit
- (suffixed to the roots of verbs, forms masculine agent nouns): -ō¹
Derived termsEdit
ReferencesEdit
- “-a¹” on page 1/1 of the Oxford Latin Dictionary (1st ed., 1968–82)
Etymology 2Edit
From the Old Latin -ād, originally the ablative feminine singular form of first-declension adjectives (compare -us, suffix forming adjectives).
PronunciationEdit
SuffixEdit
-ā (not comparable)
- suffixed chiefly to the stems of adjectives terminating in -ter, forms adverbs which are frequently also used as prepositions
Derived termsEdit
ReferencesEdit
- “-ā²” on page 1/1 of the Oxford Latin Dictionary (1st ed., 1968–82)
Etymology 3Edit
Declined forms of -us (suffix forming adjectives).
Pronunciation 1Edit
SuffixEdit
-a
- nominative feminine singular of -us
- nominative neuter plural of -us
- accusative neuter plural of -us
- vocative feminine singular of -us
- vocative neuter plural of -us
Pronunciation 2Edit
SuffixEdit
-ā
Etymology 4Edit
A conjugated form of -ō³ (suffix forming verbs).
PronunciationEdit
SuffixEdit
-ā
LatvianEdit
SuffixEdit
-a
- Used to derive feminine nouns from masculine nouns (like English -ess).
SynonymsEdit
Related termsEdit
Feminine suffixes that include -a:
Derived termsEdit
Northern SamiEdit
EtymologyEdit
From Proto-Samic *-ëk. Cognate with Finnish -e.
SuffixEdit
-a (with odd-syllable stems -at)
- Forms nouns from verbs, indicating something used for performing the verb.
- Forms nouns from verbs, indicating something that results from having the verb's action performed.
Usage notesEdit
This suffix triggers the weak grade on a preceding stressed syllable in the nominative singular and essive, and the strong grade in the other forms.
InflectionEdit
| Odd, no gradation | ||
|---|---|---|
| Nominative | -a | |
| Genitive | -aga | |
| Singular | Plural | |
| Nominative | -a | -agat |
| Accusative | -aga | -agiid |
| Genitive | -aga | -agiid |
| Illative | -agii | -agiidda |
| Locative | -agis | -agiin |
| Comitative | -agiin | -agiiguin |
| Essive | -an | |
| Possessive forms | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Singular | Dual | Plural | |
| 1st person | -agan | -ageame | -ageamet |
| 2nd person | -agat | -ageatte | -ageattet |
| 3rd person | -agis | -ageaskka | -ageaset |
Derived termsEdit
Old EnglishEdit
Alternative formsEdit
Etymology 1Edit
From Proto-Germanic *-ō.
SuffixEdit
-a
- Ending forming adverbs
Etymology 2Edit
Cognate with Old High German -o.
SuffixEdit
-a m
- nominative masculine n-stem ending
- used to form masculine agents from verbs
DeclensionEdit
Declension of -a (weak)
DescendantsEdit
- English -er
Old NorseEdit
PortugueseEdit
PronunciationEdit
Etymology 1Edit
From Old Portuguese -a, from Latin -a.
SuffixEdit
-a f
Etymology 2Edit
From Old Portuguese -a, from Latin -at.
SuffixEdit
-a
- forms the third-person singular present indicative of verbs ending in -ar
- João fala português.
- John speaks Portuguese.
- João fala português.
Etymology 3Edit
From Old Portuguese -a, from Latin -ā.
SuffixEdit
-a
- forms the second-person singular affirmative imperative of verbs ending in -ar
- João, conta-nos o seu apelido.
- John, tell us your last name.
- João, conta-nos o seu apelido.
Etymology 4Edit
SuffixEdit
-a
- forms the first-person singular present subjunctive of verbs ending in -er and -ir
- É importante que eu coma carne.
- It is important that I eat meat.
- É importante que eu coma carne.
- forms the third-person singular present subjunctive of verbs ending in -er and -ir
- É importante que ele coma carne.
- It is important that he eat meat.
- É importante que ele coma carne.
- forms the third-person singular affirmative imperative of verbs ending in -er and -ir
- Ei você aí, coma carne.
- Hey you there, eat meat.
- Ei você aí, coma carne.
- forms the third-person singular negative imperative of verbs ending in -er and -ir
- Ei você aí, não coma carne.
- Hey you there, don’t eat meat.
- Ei você aí, não coma carne.
Usage notesEdit
The third-person imperative isn’t used with third person pronouns, it’s used with você, which is a second-person pronoun but always takes third-person conjugation.
RomanianEdit
Alternative formsEdit
- -ua (used for feminine nouns ending in a stressed vowel or diphthong)
Etymology 1Edit
From Latin illa, nominative feminine singular of ille.
SuffixEdit
-a f
- (definite article) the (feminine singular, nominative and accusative)
Usage notesEdit
This form of the definite article is used for feminine nouns in the nominative and accusative cases which end in -ă or in an unstressed vowel:
The suffix is also used with feminine adjectives in the nominative and accusative cases to make the articulated definite form, often for emphasis, and it is used before the noun it modifies:
- buna fată, from fata bună (both meaning "the good girl")
- întinsa câmpie, from câmpia întinsă (both meaning "the wide/extensive plain")
Related termsEdit
Etymology 2Edit
From Latin -āre, the ending of the present active infinitive form of first conjugation verbs. Cognate with Spanish -ar, French -er, Italian -are, etc.
SuffixEdit
-a
- A suffix forming infinitives of many verbs.
Related termsEdit
See alsoEdit
Serbo-CroatianEdit
SuffixEdit
-a (Cyrillic spelling -а)
- Suffix appended to words (usually verbal stems) to create a feminine noun, usually denoting a relation or to form a proper noun.
SpanishEdit
SuffixEdit
-a
- -ess. (Used to form feminine singular nouns.)
- señor; señora — “gentleman; lady”
- camarero; camarera — “waitor; waitress”
- (Used to form the feminine singular adjectives.)
- frío; fría — “cold; cold”
- -s. (Used to form the third-person singular (also used with usted) present indicative mood of regular -ar verbs.)
- hablar; habla — “to talk; talks”
- (Used to form the first and third-person singular (also used with usted) singular subjunctive mood of -er and -ir verbs, also used for the imperative mood of usted.)
- comer; aunque yo coma — “to eat; even if I ate”; salir; por favor, salga Ud. — “to leave; please leave (formal)”
- (Used to form the second-person singular imperative mood of -ar verbs.)
- hablar; ¡Habla! — “to talk; Talk!”
Derived termsEdit
Used to form the feminine singular adjectives
“-s”. Used to form the third-person singular present indicative mood of regular -ar verbs
Used to form the first and third-person singular subjunctive mood of -er and -ir verbs
Used to form the second-person singular imperative mood of -ar verbs
SwedishEdit
EtymologyEdit
From Old Norse -a, from Proto-Germanic *-ōną.
SuffixEdit
-a
- (on an positive adjective) Suffix to mark that the corresponding noun is either in plural or in definite singular form
- Marker of definiteness for noun plurals ending in -n (fourth declension).
- läten; lätena; "sounds; the sounds"
- A verb-building suffix that can be added to noun or adjectives, such as disk (“dishes”) → diska (“do the dishes”) or öl (“beer”) → öla (“to drink beer”)
- Create a noun from a numeral, such as tre (“three”) → trea (“a three; a bronze medalist; a three-room apartment”)
Usage notesEdit
- On adjectives
- Traditionally, if the noun is in definite singular form it should not refer to a male human, if it uses the suffix -a. If it refers to such a person, the suffix should instead be -e, but one should note that this rule is not universally adhered to - in particular dialects of northern Sweden does not recognize the -e suffix at all, but use -a in all instances.
Derived termsEdit
TurkishEdit
Alternative formsEdit
- (after a vowel) -ya, -ye
- (after a possessive, dative only) -na, -ne
- (in words with front vowel harmony) -e
SuffixEdit
-a (in words with back vowel harmony)
- Used to form the dative case.
- İstanbul’a — “to Istanbul”
- Ankara’ya — “to Ankara”
- İzmir’e — “to Izmir”
- babasına — “to his father”
- Used to form gerunds.
- yürüye — “by walking”
VolapükEdit
SuffixEdit
-a
- A morpheme used to mark the genitive singular of a word (such as a noun, adjective or pronoun). It is also the most common morpheme used in creating innumerable compound words, some of which can be very long (e.g., pledadinaselidöp "toy store, toy shop", tanoganilamedin "antibiotic", taglumaladälamedin "anti-depressant", natrinakarbatazüd telik "bicarbonate of soda").
- Elaf Tyrannosaurus rex älifon in taledadil, kel nu binon dil Nolüda-Meropa.
- Tyrannosaurus rex lived in an area of the earth, which is now a part of North America.
- Buks binons stumem lärnazilana (/ lärnazilanastumem / stumem lärnazilanik).
- Books are a scholar's tools.
- Elaf Tyrannosaurus rex älifon in taledadil, kel nu binon dil Nolüda-Meropa.