Wiktionary

alas

See also: Appendix:Variations of "alas"

English

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WOTD – 24 September 2015

Etymology 1

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From Middle English alas, from Old French a las (French hélas), from a (“ah”) + las, from Latin lassus (“weary”). Compare Dutch helaas, North Frisian ielas, West Frisian eilaas.

Alternative forms

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Pronunciation

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Interjection

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alas

  1. Used to express sorrow, regret, compassion, grief, resignation, or disappointment.
    Synonyms: alack, oh well
    I wanted to catch the last bus home, but alas, I was ten minutes late and had to take a taxi instead.
    • c. 1521, John Skelton, Speke Parott:
      Helas I lamente the dull abuſyd brayne
      The enfatuate fantaſies the wytles wylfulnes
      Of on and hothyr at me that haue dyſdayne
    • c. 1599–1602 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Hamlet, Prince of Denmarke”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act V, scene i], page 278, column 1:
      Alas poore Yorick, I knew him Horatio, a fellow of infinite Ieſt; of moſt excellent fancy, he hath borne me on his backe a thouſand times: And how abhorred my Imagination is, my gorge riſes at it.
    • 1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Revelation 18:10:
      Standing afarre off for the feare of her torment, saying, Alas, alas, that great citie Babylon, that mighty citie: for in one houre is thy iudgement come.
    • 1920, Edward Carpenter, Pagan and Christian Creeds, New York: Harcourt, Brace and Co., published 1921, page 188:
      The thorough and shameless commercialism of Sex has alas! been reserved for what is called "Christian civilization," and with it (perhaps as a necessary consequence) Prostitution and Syphilis have grown into appalling evils, accompanied by a gigantic degradation of social standards, and upgrowth of petty Philistinism and niaiserie.
Derived terms
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Translations
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Etymology 2

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 Alas (geography) on Wikipedia

From Yakut алаас (alaas).

Pronunciation

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  • IPA(key): /əˈlɑːs/, /əˈlæs/

Noun

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alas (plural alases or alasses)

  1. A type of geological depression which occurs in Yakutia, formed by the subsidence of permafrost.
    Alternative forms: alass, alaas
Translations
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Anagrams

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Aromanian

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Alternative forms

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Etymology

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From Latin laxō. Compare Romanian lăsa, las.

Verb

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alas first-singular present indicative (past participle alãsatã)

  1. to let, allow
  2. to leave (something), drop

Derived terms

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Balinese

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Romanization

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alas

  1. Romanization of ᬳᬮᬲ᭄.

Cebuano

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Etymology 1

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Blend of a +‎ las. From Spanish a las.

Adverb

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alas

  1. o'clock

Etymology 2

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From Spanish as.

Noun

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alas

  1. (card games) an ace; a card with a single spot
  2. a trump card

Estonian

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Noun

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alas

  1. inessive singular of ala

Finnish

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Alternative forms

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Etymology

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From Proto-Finnic *alas. Equivalent to ala- (“lower, under”) +‎ -s (s-lative singular).

Pronunciation

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  • IPA(key): /ˈɑlɑs/, [ˈɑ̝lɑ̝s̠]
  • Rhymes: -ɑlɑs
  • Syllabification(key): a‧las

Adverb

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alas (comparative alemmaksi or alemmas, superlative alimmaksi or alimmas)

  1. down, downward, downwards

Inflection

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Declension of ala-
noun case singular pluraladverbial form singular plural
nominative ala- –superessive alhaalla –
genitive – –delative alhaalta –
partitive – –sublative alhaalle –
accusative – –lative alas –
inessive – –temporal – –
elative – –causative – –
illative – –multiplicative – –
adessive alla –distributive – –
ablative alta –temp. dist. – –
allative alle –prolative ali
alitse		 –
essive – –situative allekkain
(alakkain)		 –
translative – –oppositive alatusten –
abessive – –
instructive – –
comitative – –

Synonyms

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Antonyms

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  • (antonym(s) of “down; downward”): ylös

Interjection

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alas

  1. (followed by a nominative) down with (e.g. in demonstrations)
    Alas rikolliset!
    Down with the criminals!

Verb

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alas

  1. second-person singular present imperative of alkaa (with enclitic -s)

Derived terms

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compounds

Further reading

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Anagrams

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Indonesian

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Pronunciation

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  • IPA(key): /a.las/
  • Hyphenation: a‧las

Etymology 1

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From Malay alas (“base, layer”), from Classical Malay الس (alas).

Noun

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alas (first-person possessive alasku, second-person possessive alasmu, third-person possessive alasnya)

  1. base, foundation
  2. layer, lining, covering
Synonyms
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Derived terms
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Etymology 2

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From Javanese alas (ꦲꦭꦱ꧀, “forest”), from Old Javanese alas (“forest”), from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *halas (“forest, wilderness, woods, jungle”), from Proto-Austronesian *Salas (“forest, wilderness, woods”). Cognate to Balinese ᬳᬮᬲ᭄ (alas, “forest”).

Noun

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alas (first-person possessive alasku, second-person possessive alasmu, third-person possessive alasnya)

  1. forest
    Synonyms: hutan, rimba, wana

Etymology 3

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From Javanese [Term?].

Noun

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alas (first-person possessive alasku, second-person possessive alasmu, third-person possessive alasnya)

  1. rope on a small boat balancer

Further reading

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Ingrian

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Etymology

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From Proto-Finnic *alas. Cognates include Finnish alas and dialectal Estonian alas.

Pronunciation

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Adverb

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alas

  1. Synonym of allaa
    • 1936, D. I. Efimov, Lukukirja: Inkeroisia alkușkouluja vart (ensimäine osa), Leningrad: Riikin Ucebno-pedagogiceskoi Izdateljstva, page 13:
      Yks, kaks! Alas läks.
      Yks! Kaks! Ympäär plaks!
      One, two! Down you go.
      One! Two! Around you plop down!

Derived terms

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References

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  • Ruben E. Nirvi (1971) Inkeroismurteiden Sanakirja, Helsinki: Suomalais-Ugrilainen Seura, page 11
  • Arvo Laanest (1997) Isuri keele Hevaha murde sõnastik, Eesti Keele Instituut, page 19

Javanese

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Romanization

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alas

  1. Romanization of ꦲꦭꦱ꧀

Latin

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Etymology 1

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Pronunciation

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Noun

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ālās

  1. accusative plural of āla

Etymology 2

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Pronunciation

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Verb

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alās

  1. second-person singular present active subjunctive of alō

References

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Latvian

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Pronunciation

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Noun

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alas f

  1. inflection of ala:
    1. genitive singular
    2. nominative/vocative/accusative plural

Malay

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Pronunciation

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Noun

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alas (Jawi spelling الس, plural alas-alas, informal 1st possessive alasku, 2nd possessive alasmu, 3rd possessive alasnya)

  1. base, framework, layer, pad, foundation

Derived terms

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Further reading

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Middle English

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Etymology

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from Old French a las.

Interjection

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alas

  1. alas
    • 1470–1483 (date produced), Thom̃s Malleorre [i.e., Thomas Malory], “[Morte Arthur]”, in Le Morte Darthur (British Library Additional Manuscript 59678), [England: s.n.], folio 451, verso, lines 13–14:
      Alas ſeyde quene Gwenyu[er] now ar we myſcheved bothe //
      “Alas!” said Queen Guinevere, “now are we mischieved both!”

Descendants

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  • English: alas

Mirandese

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Noun

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alas

  1. plural of ala

Occitan

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Noun

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alas

  1. plural of ala

Old Javanese

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Etymology

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From Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *halas (“forest, wilderness, woods, jungle”), from Proto-Austronesian *Salas (“forest, wilderness, woods”).

Noun

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alas

  1. wood, forest
  2. quantity of flowers or plants growing in a thick cluster

Descendants

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Further reading

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  • "alas" in P.J. Zoetmulder with the collaboration of S.O. Robson, Old Javanese-English Dictionary. 's-Gravenhage: M. Nijhoff, 1982.

Old Spanish

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Noun

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alas

  1. plural of ala

Old Sundanese

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Etymology

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From Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *halas (“forest, wilderness, woods, jungle”), from Proto-Austronesian *Salas (“forest, wilderness, woods”).

Noun

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alas

  1. wood, forest
  2. (by extension) land, territory
    • (Can we date this quote?), Bujangga Manik:
      Sadatang ka tungtung Sunda, meuntasing di Cipamali, datang ka alas Jawa.
      When I've reached the limits of Sunda, I crossed the Pamali river, and came to the lands of Java.

Descendants

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  • > Sundanese: alas (inherited)

Portuguese

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Noun

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alas

  1. plural of ala

Verb

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alas

  1. second-person singular present indicative of alar

Serbo-Croatian

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Noun

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àlās m (Cyrillic spelling а̀ла̄с)

  1. alternative form of hàlās

Declension

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Declension of alas
singular plural
nominative àlās alási
genitive alása alásā
dative alásu alásima
accusative àlās aláse
vocative alase alási
locative alásu alásima
instrumental alásom alásima

Spanish

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Pronunciation

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Noun

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alas f pl

  1. plural of ala

Sundanese

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Etymology

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From Old Sundanese alas, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *halas (“forest, wilderness, woods, jungle”), from Proto-Austronesian *Salas (“forest, wilderness, woods”).

Noun

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alas or ᮃᮜᮞ᮪ • (alas)

  1. forest
    Synonym: leuweung

Tagalog

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Etymology 1

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Borrowed from Spanish al as.

Pronunciation

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Noun

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alás (Baybayin spelling ᜀᜎᜐ᜔)

  1. (card games) ace
    Synonym: eis
  2. (figuratively, by extension) trump card
Derived terms
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See also
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Playing cards in Tagalog · baraha (layout · text)
             
alas dos tres kuwatro singko seis siyete
             
otso nuwebe diyes kabayo, sota reyna hari diyoker, payaso

Etymology 2

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Borrowed from Spanish a las.

Pronunciation

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Adverb

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alás (Baybayin spelling ᜀᜎᜐ᜔)

  1. o'clock (except for one o' clock)
    Synonym: (for one o' clock) ala
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Etymology 3

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Pronunciation

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Adjective

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alás (Baybayin spelling ᜀᜎᜐ᜔)

  1. cut short and even

Noun

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alas (Baybayin spelling ᜀᜎᜐ᜔)

  1. act of cutting or lopping off growth evenly
    Synonym: palas
Derived terms
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References

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  • “alas”, in Pambansang Diksiyonaryo | Diksiyonaryo.ph, Manila, 2018
  • Zorc, David Paul (1979–1983) Core Etymological Dictionary of Filipino: Part 1, page 9

Anagrams

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Tetum

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Etymology

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From Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *halas, from Proto-Austronesian *Salas.

Noun

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alas

  1. forest
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