English

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English Wikipedia has an article on:
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Alternative forms

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Etymology

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Borrowed from Spanish alfil (chess bishop).

Noun

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alfil (plural alfils)

  1. (chess) A fairy chess piece that moves two squares diagonally, leaping over any intermediary pieces.

Anagrams

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Asturian

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Noun

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alfil m (plural alfiles)

  1. (chess) bishop

See also

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Chess pieces in Asturian · pieces d'axedrez (layout · text)
           
rei dama, reina torre alfil caballu peón

Catalan

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Pronunciation

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Noun

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alfil m (plural alfils)

  1. (chess) bishop

See also

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Chess pieces in Catalan · peces d'escacs (layout · text)
           
rei reina, dama torre alfil cavall peó

Galician

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Etymology

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Borrowed from Arabic فِيل (fīl, elephant) via Andalusian Arabic, from Classical Persian پیل (pīl).

Noun

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alfil m (plural alfís)

  1. (chess) bishop

See also

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Chess pieces in Galician · pezas de xadrez (layout · text)
           
rei dama, raíña torre, roque alfil cabalo peón

Spanish

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Spanish Wikipedia has an article on:
Wikipedia es
 
El alfil solo puede moverse en diagonal.The bishop can only move diagonally.

Alternative forms

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Etymology

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Borrowed from Arabic الْفِيل (al-fīl, the elephant) via Andalusian Arabic, from Classical Persian پیل (pīl).

Pronunciation

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  • IPA(key): /alˈfil/ [alˈfil]
  • Audio (Venezuela):(file)
  • Rhymes: -il
  • Syllabification: al‧fil

Noun

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alfil m (plural alfiles)

  1. (chess) bishop
    • 1283, Alfonso X the Wise, “Libro del acedrex [Book of Chess]”, in Libro de los juegos [Book of Games], folio 4v:
      Los alffiles an a ſeer fechos a manera de eleffantes castiellos en cima dellos llenos de omnes armados como ſi quiſieſſen lidiar.
      Bishops have to be made as of elephants and castles, on top of which full of of armed men, as if they wanted to fight.
    • 1858, Gerónimo Borao, “De los alfiles [Of the Bishops]” (chapter 5), in El ajedrez: tratado de sus principios fundamentales [Chess: Treaty of its fundamental principles], Zaragoza: Vicente Andrés, page 44:
      Los alfiles toman nombre del color en donde al principio se asientan, color que conservan hasta el fin [].
      Bishops claim the name of whichever color they land in first, color which is kept until the end.
  2. (figurative) close ally
    • 2024 December 30, “Javier Milei prorrogó el presupuesto de 2023 por decreto”, in Diario Río Negro[1]:
      Por su parte, un importante alfil libertario afirmó: “Si acceden a votar el Presupuesto que mandamos, tranquilamente podría tratarse en febrero. Dependerá de los gobernadores”.
      (please add an English translation of this quotation)

Derived terms

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Descendants

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  • English: alfil

See also

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Chess pieces in Spanish · piezas de ajedrez (layout · text)
           
rey dama, reina torre, roque alfil caballo peón

Further reading

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