From theAncient Greek ἀ- ( a- ,“ not, without ” ) .
a-
Used to form taxonomic names indicating a lack of some feature that might be expected a-
( SI prefix ) atto- FromMiddle English a- ( “ up, out, away ” ) , fromOld English ā- *ar- *or- Proto-West Germanic *uʀ- Proto-Germanic *uz- ( “ out- ” ) , fromProto-Indo-European *uds- ( “ up, out ” ) . Cognate withOld Saxon a- German er-
a-
( no longerproductive ) Forming verbs with the senseaway ,up ,on ,out . a rise,a wait
( no longerproductive ) Forming verbs with the sense of intensified action. a bide,a maze
a-
( rare or no longerproductive ) In ,on ,at ; used to show a state, condition, or manner. Also passing into sense 2.[First attested prior to 1150] [ 1] a glow,a pace,a fire,a boil,a -bling,a bluster
( no longerproductive ) [First attested prior to 1150] [ 1] a sunder
In the direction of, ortoward .[First attested prior to 1150] [ 1] a stern,a beam
( archaic or dialectal ) [First attested prior to 1150] [ 1] Comea -morning we are going hunting.
( archaic or dialectal ) [First attested prior to 1150] [ 1] hitsa- poppin
doinsa- transpirin [doingsa- transpiring] 1780 ,The Twelve Days of Christmas The twelfth day of Christmas, My true love sent to me Twelve lordsa- leaping, … Eight maidsa- milking, Seven swansa- swimming, Six geesea -laying, circa1850 ,Here We Come A-wassailing /Here We Come A-carolingHere we comea- wassailing Among the leaves so green; Here we comea- wand’ring So fair to be seen. 1939 Alfred Edward Housman ,Additional Poems , XIII, lines 6-7:Oh waste no wordsa- wooing
1947 ,A NORTH-COUNTY DUBLIN CLOSSARY :[ 2] The hay isa- cutting now. You'rea- wanting. 1964 ,Bob Dylan ,"The Times They Are a-Changin' " (recorded 1963, released 1964):The order is rapidly fadin' And the first one now will later be last For the times they area- changin' circa1970 , bumper sticker:[ 3] If the van’sa- rockin’, don’t comea- knockin’. Adjectives formed with this prefix are often restricted topredicative use, owing to their origin asprepositional phrases with the preposition "on." For example, one may say "the ship isafire, " but not "theafire ship," just as one may say "the ship ison fire, " but not "theon fire ship."
Middle English a- y- Old English ġe- Proto-West Germanic *ga- Proto-Germanic *ga- Proto-Indo-European *ḱóm ( “ with ” ) .
a-
Alternative form ofy- ( archaic and dialectal ) In dialect, it is sometimes conflated with sense 5 of the previous definition, and is used as a general indicator of a participle. [First attested around 1150 to 1350 (Middle English).] [ 1] a ware,a like
( Devon ) Used to form the past participle of a verb. I havea- gone.
I havea- seen a bird.
FromAnglo-Norman a- Old French e- Latin ex-
a-
( no longerproductive ) Forming words with the sense ofwholly , orutterly out . [First attested from around 1150 to 1350.] [ 1] a bash
Ancient Greek ἀ- ( a- ) (ἀν- ( an- ) immediately followed by a vowel).
a-
Not , without, opposite of.a moral,a symmetry,a theism,a sexual,a cyclic,a typical
1948 (revised 1952),Robert Graves ,The White Goddess , Faber & Faber 1999, page 7:When invited to believe in the Chimaera, the horse-centaurs, or the winged horse Pegasus, all of them straightforward Pelasgian cult-symbols, a philosopher felt bound to reject them asa -zoölogical improbabilities [...]. 2012 The Origins of Sex , Penguin, published2013 , page191 :If aroused outside the proper outlet of marriage, [female lust] could range out of control, turning its possessor into ana- feminine monster: that is what happened to fallen women.
This prefix is referred to asalpha privative . Used with stems that begin with consonants except sometimesh .an- h .[ 4] anesthetic analgesic not, without, opposite of
FromMiddle English a- Middle French a- Latin ad ( “ towards ” ) .
a-
( no longerproductive ) [First attested from around 1150 to 1350.] [ 1] a scend,a spire,a mass,a bandon,a venue
Used on stems that started withsc ,sp , orst , and also used on stems with a French origin. Used in place ofad- [ 5] FromLatin ab ( “ of, off, from, away ” ) .
a-
( no longerproductive ) [First attested from around 1150 to 1350.] [ 1] a vert,a perient,a bridge,a ssoil,[ 4] a ssoilzieVariation of the prefixab- , only used when the stem starts with the letterp orv ,[ 4] s in which case thes is doubled (as inassoil andassoilzie ). FromMiddle English a- o- ( “ of ” ) . Seea ( preposition, of ) .
a-
( no longerproductive ) [First attested prior to 1150.] [ 1] Different Germanic and Latinate senses ofa- became confused (vaguely “intensive") and are all unproductive. The Greek sense of “not” (e.g.,amoral asymmetry
“[I]t naturally happened that all thesea- prefixes were at length confusedly lumped together in idea, and the resultanta- looked upon as vaguely intensive, rhetorical,euphonic [nice-sounding], or even archaic, and whollyotiose [pointless].” OED. a-
Alternative form of-a ( “ empty syllable added to songs, poetry, verse and other speech ” ) .A- tisketa- tasket,
a-
( Chester ) Used as a prefix to verbs in the sense of remaining in the same condition.[ 6] a- be,a- going
Let that choilta -be, wilt ta. ―Let that child alone, will you.[ 6] ↑1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 Brown, Lesley (2003) ^ J. J. Hogan and Patrick C. O'Neill (1947 ), “A NORTH-COUNTY DUBLIN GLOSSARY”, inBéaloideas [1] 17 , number1/2 , An Cumann Le Béaloideas Eireann/Folklore of lreland Society, page263 ^ See “Don’t Come A-Knockin’ ”,TV Tropes for more examples and discussion. ↑4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 Urdang, Laurence (1984) ^ Lindberg, Christine A. (2007) ↑6.0 6.1 Robert Holland, M.R.A.C.,A Glossary of Words Used in the County of Chester, Part I--A to F., English Dialect Society, London, 1884, 1 Lesley Brown, editor-in-chief, William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, editors (2002 ), “a-”, inThe Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles Oxford University Press ,→ISBN Christine A. Lindberg, editor (2002 ), “a-”, inThe Oxford College Dictionary , 2nd edition, New York, N.Y.: Spark Publishing,→ISBN Laurence Urdang (editor),The Random House College Dictionary (Random House, 1984 [1975],→ISBN ), page 1 Douglas Harper (2001–2025 ), “a- ”, inOnline Etymology Dictionary a-
prefix attached to words relating to the mouth, such as the names of languages a-
( directional ) from adistance SIL International (2020 ), “Abau Dictionary”, inWebonary.org [2]
a- [ 1]
( prefix, second-person verbal prefix ) you A upakaꞌpʉ.You woke up.( prefix, second-person noun prefix ) your Ay arokooi.Your hat. ^ Stegeman, Ray; Hunter, Rita (2014 ),Akawaio-English Dictionary and English-Akawaio Index , SIL International, page18 a-
positive active verbalfirst-person singular concord A kwi ―I woreBorrowed fromAncient Greek ἀ- ( a- ) .
a-
a- ( not, without ) a- + moral ( “ moral ” ) → amoral ( “ amoral ” ) FromLatin ad ( “ towards ” ) .
a-
used to make verbs from adjectives and nouns a- + feble ( “ weak ” ) → afeblir ( “ to weaken ” ) a- + sabor ( “ taste ” ) → assaborir ( “ to taste ” ) Inherited fromProto-Bantu *bà-
a-
Class 2 noun prefix. Inherited fromProto-Bantu *à-
a-
Class 1 subject concord. Inherited fromProto-Bantu *bá-
a-
Class 2 subject concord. Inherited fromProto-Bantu *gá-
a-
Class 6 subject concord. Froma- ( “ they ” ) +-a- ( “ past perfect infix ” ) . Cognate withTumbuka ŵa-
a-
3rd person plural subject concord in the past perfect tense. 3rd person singular subject concord for conveying respect in the past perfect tense. Inherited fromProto-Bantu *báá-
a-
Class 2 possessive concord. Inherited fromProto-Bantu *gáá-
a-
Class 6 possessive concord. a-
A verbal prefix used in the imperfect paradigm to express the polite imperative or the cohortative. attaxtop! ―Do write! attintúrna! ―Watch over us! atxottúx! ―Do remember! It triggers gemination of the following consonant.
Borg, Alexander (2004 ),A Comparative Glossary of Cypriot Maronite Arabic (Arabic–English) (Handbook of Oriental Studies;I.70 ), Leiden and Boston: Brill,page135 FromAncient Greek ἀ- ( a- ,“ not, without ” ) , fromProto-Hellenic *ə- ( “ un-, not; without, lacking ” ) , fromProto-Indo-European *n̥- ( “ not, un- ” ) .Doublet ofu-
Comparean- ἀν- ( an- ) immediately preceding a vowel).
a-
a- un- (not )A- (atomic ,nuclear )Synonyms: atom- A- FromAncient Greek ἀ- ( a- ) (ἀν- ( an- ) immediately preceding a vowel).
a-
a- not , without, opposite ofFromAncient Greek ἀ- ( a- ) .
a-
without ,-less Internationalism (seeEnglish a- Ancient Greek ἀ- ( a- ) .
a-
( in loanwords ) a- ,non- ,un- Synonym: epä- Inherited fromLatin ad-
a- ( ORB )
Attaches to verbs, sometimes adding a sense of "toward". Inherited fromOld French a- Latin ad-
a-
A prefix forming words, especially verbs, that denote entering a state, making progress toward a goal, or the like. FromAncient Greek ἀ- ( a- ) (ἀν- ( an- ) immediately preceding a vowel; generalized from the many Latin borrowings using this prefix.
a-
a- non- ,-less a-
marks thefirst-person singular subject on averb a- + dibaia ( “ to spear ” ) → adibaia ( “ I speared it ” ) a- + 'aniani ( “ to eat ” ) → a'aniani ( “ I ate ” ) a- + rogae ( “ to jump ” ) → arogae ( “ I jumped ” ) CategoryGabadi terms prefixed with a- not found
Oa, Morea and Ma`oni Paul. (November 2013).Tentative Grammar Description for the Gabadi language spoken in Central Province . Editor: Eileen Gasaway. [Unpublished manuscript/course material, Ukarumpa, Papua New Guinea]. For the prefixa- , see page 23, section "5.1.1 Subject Marking". FromOld Galician-Portuguese a- Latin ad-
a-
added toadjective X, forms verbs meaning to make/turn X a- + curto ( “ short ” ) + -ar acurtar ( “ to shorten ” ) added tonoun X, forms verbs meaning to cause or make X or to cause something to have X a- + fervor ( “ passion ” ) + -ar afervoar ( “ to excite ” ) Borrowed fromAncient Greek ἀ- ( a- ) , fromProto-Indo-European *n̥-
a-
a- ( not; without ) Synonym: in- FromAncient Greek ἀ- ( a- ) (ἀν- ( an- ) immediately preceding a vowel).
a-
a- ( not, without, opposite of ) “a- ” inDuden online “a- ” inDigitales Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache FromProto-Malayo-Polynesian *ha- ( adjectival prefix for adjectives of measure ) . CompareBikol Central ha- Cebuano ha-
IPA (key ) : /ʔa/ [ʔa] Syllabification:a- a- (Hanunoo spelling ᜠ
adjectival prefix to words denoting height, length, or depth Blust, Robert; Trussel, Stephen; et al. (2023) “*ha-₁ ”, in the CLDF dataset fromThe Austronesian Comparative Dictionary (2010–),→DOI FromSanskrit अ- ( a- ,“ un-, not ” ) , fromProto-Indo-Iranian *a- Proto-Indo-European *n̥-
a-
a- ( not, without, opposite of ) ai- ( before a palatalized consonant, both etymologies ) FromAncient Greek ἀ- ( a- ) (ἀν- ( an- ) immediately followed by a vowel).
a-
a- ( not, without, opposite of ) a-
alternative form ofath- used beforet Inherited fromLatin ad-
a-
ad- ( indicating direction ) Borrowed fromAncient Greek ἀ- ( a- ) .
a-
a- ( indicating lack or loss ) a-
Rōmaji transcription ofあ (Thisetymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at theEtymology scriptorium .)
a-
( Kamnyu ) my a-
Used to negate the prefixed element :not Qingxia Dai; Jie Li (2007 ),勒期语研究 The study of the Leqi language →ISBN 322 Hkaw Luk (2017 ),A grammatical sketch of Lacid [3] 17 Mark Wannemacher (2011 ),A phonological overview of the Lacid language [4] 40 Hideo Sawada (2024 ), “Differences between ‘Lacid’ and ‘Leqi’”, inGrammatical Phenomena of Sino-Tibetan Languages , volume 6, pages33-54 ā-
alternative form ofab- Used before bilabial voiced consonants:b- ,m- andv- .
Fromad ( “ towards ” ) .
a-
( Before a word beginning withsc ,sp orst ) alternative form ofad- a- + scandere ( “ climb ” ) → a scendere( “ climb up, go up; rise, spring up ” ) a- + scrībere ( “ write ” ) → a scrībere( “ state in writing, add in writing; insert; appoint, enroll, enfranchise, reckon, number ” ) a- + spīrāre ( “ breathe ” ) → a spīrāre( “ breathe or blow upon; am favorable to, assist, favor, aid; aspire or desire (to); approach, come near (to) ” ) a- + specere ( “ observe, look at ” ) → a spicere( “ look at or towards, behold; regard, respect; observe, notice; examine, inspect; consider, ponder ” ) a- + stringere ( “ press, tighten, compress ” ) → a stringere( “ draw close, bind or tie together; tighten, contract; check, restrain; oblige, necessitate ” ) a- + struere ( “ compose, construct, build; ready, prepare; place, arrange ” ) → a struere( “ build near or to a thing, erect; build on, heap; build an additional structure ” ) Via other European languages, ultimately fromAncient Greek ἀ- ( a- ) (ἀν- ( an- ) immediately preceding a vowel).
a-
Not ,not having ,without ,opposite of.a- + seksuāls aseksuāls aon- ( befores- ( “ iterative ” ) andt- ( “ cislocative ” ) ) a-
irrealis prefixNora Deering; Helga H. Delisle (1976 ),Mohawk: A teaching grammar (preliminary version), Quebec: Manitou College, page332 a-
( unproductive ) Used to form a few adverbs signifying a location or motion from or to above. Katarzyna Izabela Wojtylak (2017 ),A grammar of Murui (Bue): a Witotoan language of Northwest Amazonia. [5] 145 a-
someone 's,people 'sThis prefix is often used as a neutral possessive pronoun to make the citation forms ofinalienable nouns:amá ( “ someone's mother ” ) ,akʼos ( “ someone's neck ” ) ,ajáád ( “ someone's leg ” ) ,ajaaʼ ( “ someone's ear ” ) ,akʼéí ( “ someone's kin ” ) . The alternative is to use the prefixha- ( “ one's ” ) orbi- ( “ his/her/its/their ” ) to make these dictionary forms.
Inherited fromLatin ad-
a-
compareItalian a- FromProto-Bantu *gá-
a- (medial wa-
they ;class 6 subject concord. FromProto-Bantu *gáá-
a-
of ;class 6 possessive concord. (Thisetymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at theEtymology scriptorium .)
a-
Class 6 relative concord. From the first letter of the Norwegian alphabeta Latin a Ancient Greek Α ( A ,“ alpha ” ) , likely through theEtruscan Phoenician 𐤀 ( ʾ ) , from Proto-CanaaniteEgyptian 𓃾
a-
indicating thefirst orbest in somethingSynonyms: a A- a- + lag a-lag FromAncient Greek ἀ- ( a- ,“ not, without ” ) , fromProto-Hellenic *ə- ( “ un-, not; without, lacking ” ) , fromProto-Indo-European *n̥- ( “ not, un- ” ) .Doublet ofu-
Comparean- ἀν- ( an- ) immediately preceding a vowel).
a-
a- ( not, without, opposite of ) Synonyms: a an- a- + politisk ( “ political ” ) → apolitisk ( “ apolitical ” ) a- + sosial ( “ social ” ) → asosial ( “ asocial ” ) a- + symmetrisk ( “ symmetrical ” ) → asymmetrisk ( “ asymmetrical ” ) a- + gnostiker ( “ gnostic ” ) → agnostiker ( “ agnostic ” ) Clipping ofatom- atom ( “ atom ” ) , fromAncient Greek ἄτομος ( átomos ,“ indivisible, uncut, undivided ” ) , whereas atombombe is a calque ofEnglish atomic bomb
a-
short foratom- a- + bombe a-bombe “a-” inThe Bokmål Dictionary .“a-” inDet Norske Akademis ordbok (NAOB ).“a- ” inStore norske leksikon FromAncient Greek ἀ- ( a- ,“ not, without ” ) .
a-
a- ( not, without ) “a-” inThe Nynorsk Dictionary .From an earlier formar- Proto-West Germanic *uʀ- Proto-Germanic *uz- Old High German ar- ir- German er-
ā-
from ,away ,off ,out āniman ―to take away, to remove Inherited fromLatin ad- a-
a-
indicating movement towards something ( by extension ) indicating a change of state intensifying prefix alternative form ofes- FromProto-Celtic *em m *ed n
a- (class A infixed pronoun
him ( triggers eclipsis ) it ( triggers lenition ) This form merges with the prefixesro- no- dí- to- fo- ar- imm- ra- ,na- ,da- ,da- ,fa- ,ara- ,imma- respectively. It disappears after the particlení ( “ not ” ) , its only trace being the mutation it causes (eclipsis in the case of the masculine, lenition in the case of the neuter), thusní cara ( “ does not love ” ) vs.ní chara ( “ does not love it ” ) ,ní ben ( “ does not strike ” ) vs.ní mben ( “ does not strike him ” ) .
Old Irish affixed pronouns See
Appendix:Old Irish affixed pronouns for details on how these forms are used.
Note that the so-called “infixed” pronouns are technically prefixes, but they are never the first prefix in a verbal complex.
person infixed suffixed class A class B class C 1sg m- L dom- L ,dam- L -um 2sg t- L dot- L ,dat- L ,dut- L ,dit- L -ut 3sg m a- N ,e- N d- N id- N ,did- N ,d- N -i -it 3sg f s- (N) da- -us 3sg n a- L ,e- L d- L id- L ,did- L ,d- L -i -it 1pl n- don- dun- dan- -unn 2pl b- dob- dub- dab- -uib 3pl s- (N) da- -us
L means this form triggers lenition.N means this form triggers nasalization (eclipsis)(N) means this form triggers nasalization in some texts but not in others.
(Thisetymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at theEtymology scriptorium .)
a-
stative/active verb forming Synonyms: (m)aN- -um- adjective forming Borrowed fromSanskrit अ- ( a- ,“ un- ,not ” )
a-
un- ,not From an earlier formar- Proto-Germanic *uz- Old English a- Old High German ar- ir- German er-
a-
forming words with the sensefrom ,away ,out ,off , e.g.animan a-
Indefinite suffix, used with inalienable nouns, prepositions and non-stative verbs when no person prefix is added. a chee[someone's ] ear Álvarez, José; Bravo, María (2008 ), “a-”, inDiccionario básico de la lengua añú [Basic dictionary of the Añú language [6] →ISBN 41 FromProto-Bantu *gá-
a- (medial wa-
they ;class 6 subject concord. Learned borrowing fromAncient Greek ἀ- ( a- ) .
a-
forming words with the sense of negation,a- a- + społeczny aspołeczny a- in Polish dictionaries at PWNFromOld Galician-Portuguese a- Latin ad-
a-
added toadjective X, forms verbs meaning to make/turn X a- + vermelho ( “ red ” ) + -ar avermelhar ( “ to redden ” ) a- + baixo ( “ low ” ) + -ar abaixar ( “ to lower ” ) added tonoun X, forms verbs meaning to cause or make X or to cause something to have X a- + pavor ( “ dread ” ) + -ar apavorar ( “ to frighten ” ) a- + fama ( “ fame ” ) + -ar afamar ( “ to make famous ” ) Borrowed fromAncient Greek ἀ- ( a- ) , fromProto-Indo-European *n̥-
an- ( before a vowel sound ) a-
a- ( not; without ) Synonym: in- a moralamoral an aeróbioanaerobic Inherited fromClassical Latin ad- ad ( “ to, towards ” ) .
a-
ad- ( toward, to, tendency ) FromMiddle English a- ( “ on ” ) , derived from unstressedMiddle English an ( “ on ” ) , fromOld English an ( “ on ” ) .
a-
on a back,a gley,a grufe,a thort,a tweenFromMiddle English a- Old English of- ( “ off ” ) .
a-
off a doonFromOld Norse at- ( “ to ” ) .
a-
to a dae,a gaeFromMiddle English a- ( “ up, out, away ” ) , fromOld English ā- *ar- *or- Proto-Germanic *uz- ( “ out- ” ) .
a-
away froma bide,a riseFromMiddle English and- Old English and- ( “ against, back ” ) , fromProto-Germanic *andi- ( “ across, opposite, against, away ” ) .
a-
against ,opposite a langFromMiddle English a- Old English ane ( “ one ” ) .
a-
one a whileFrom ah!
a-
ah a weel,a lakeFromMiddle English a- Middle French a- Latin ad ( “ towards ” ) .
a-
towards a viseFromLatin ab ( “ of, off, from, away ” ) .
a-
away froma ssoilzieFromAncient Greek ἀ- ( a- ) (ἀν- ( an- ) immediately preceding a vowel), fromProto-Indo-European *n̥- ( “ un-, not ” ) ,zero-grade form of*né ( “ not ” ) .Doublet ofne
a- (Cyrillic spelling а-
Prefix prepended to words to denote a negation, deprivation or absence of a property denoted by base word. Synonyms: bez- ne- a- + sȍcijālan ȁsocijālan a- + simètrija asimètrija a- + brahija abrahija “a- ”, inHrvatski jezični portal [Croatian language portal 2006–2025 Inherited fromLatin ad- ad ( “ to, towards ” ) .
a-
added toadjective ornoun to create a verb, along with the suffixes-ari or-iri . a- + capu ( “ end ” ) + -ari accapari ( “ to end ” ) FromProto-Bantu *gá-
a- (medial wa-
they ;class 6 subject concord. FromProto-Bantu *gáá-
a-
of ;class 6 possessive concord. (Thisetymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at theEtymology scriptorium .)
a-
Class 6 relative concord. Inherited fromLatin ad-
a-
forms words, especially verbs, that denote entering a state, making progress toward a goal, or the like FromAncient Greek ἀ- ( a- ) (ἀν- ( an- ) immediately preceding a vowel; generalized from the many Latin borrowings using this prefix.
a-
a- non- ,-less Used with stems that begin with consonants excepth .an- h . For example,analfabetismo ( “ analphabetism ” ) . FromProto-Bantu *à-
a-
she ,he ;3rd person singular (m class(I) ) subject concord Antonym: ha- 18th century , Abdallah bin Ali bin Nasir,Al-Inkishafi [7] R. Allen (1946 ), “Inkishafi—a translation from the Swahili”, inAfrican Studies , volume 5, number 4,→DOI 243–249 14 :اِدَاوُ كِغِمَ هُمِتَ پِيْبِ ،اَ سِپَتِ كَطِ كُنَ مَااِيِ Endao kwegema humita pembe,a sipate kaṭi kunwa maiye. he charges the comer, none tastes of the water Swahili personal pronouns (m-wa class(I/II) ) person independent subject concord object combined forms possessive affirmative negative na ndi- si- singular first mimi ni- si- -ni- nami , namimi ndimi ,ndiye simi ,siye -angu second wewe u- hu- -ku- nawe , nawewe ndiwe ,ndiye siwe ,siye -ako third yeye a- ,yu- ha- ,hayu- -m- ,-mw- ,-mu- naye , nayeye ndiye siye -ake plural first sisi tu- hatu- -tu- nasi , nasisi ndisi ,ndio sio -etu second ninyi m- ,mw- ,mu- ham- ,hamw- ,hamu- -wa- nanyi , naninyi ndinyi ,ndio sinyi ,sio -enu third wao wa- hawa- -wa- nao ndio sio -ao reflexive — — -ji- — — For a full table including other classes, seeAppendix:Swahili personal pronouns .
a-
contraction ofa- +-a- ( “ 3rd person singular (m class(I) ) gnomic ” ) FromProto-Bantu *à-
a- (medial ka-
he ,she ,it ;class 1 subject concord, used in the subjunctive and potential mood. FromProto-Bantu *gá-
a- (medial wa-
they ;class 6 subject concord. FromProto-Bantu *gáá-
a-
of ;class 6 possessive concord. FromProto-Malayo-Polynesian *ma- Proto-Austronesian *ma- ( stative prefix ) .
a-
used to form adjectives indicating a quality a- + amis ( “ sweetness ” ) → a-amis ( “ sweet ” ) a- + laat ( “ badness ” ) → a-laat ( “ bad ” ) Borrowed fromSpanish a Latin ad
a- (Baybayin spelling ᜀ
at ( indicating time ) Puntahan kita saa-primero ng Marso. I'll go to you at thefirst of March. Sahuran tuwinga-kinse ng bawat buwan. It is payday every15th of every month. A-treynta y uno kahapon.Yesterday was the31st . Only used before Spanish cardinal numbers to tell the date for a month. For the first day of a month,a-primero a-uno ika- The prefix is optional but Spanish-oriented speakers often use it. á- (Baybayin spelling ᜀ ( dialectal , chiefly Mindoro )
forms contemplative aspect forms for verbs in the object or directional trigger FromProto-Berber
a-
the masculine form of nouns. the masculine form of adjectives. ( before-a- or subjunctive-e- ) y- ( before vowels in other cases ) ay- FromProto-Bantu *à-
a-
he ,she ;class 1 subject concord a- + -kora ( “ to do ” ) → akora ( “ he/she does ” ) Kaji, Shigeki (2007 ),A Rutooro Vocabulary [8] →ISBN 413 FromProto-Italic *ən- Proto-Indo-European *n̥-
a- ( earlyIguvine )
alternative form of𐌀- ( a- ) Buck, Carl Darling (1904 ),A Grammar of Oscan and Umbrian: With a Collection of Inscriptions and a Glossary Poultney, James Wilson (1959 ),The Bronze Tables of Iguvium [9] De Vaan, Michiel (2008 ),Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 7), Leiden, Boston: Brill,→ISBN page301 a-
affirmative prefix, emphasises prefixed word a- + trist ( “ sad ” ) → athrist ( “ very sad, sorrowful ” ) a- + traidd ( “ piercing, penetration ” ) → athraidd ( “ permeable ” ) Triggersaspirate mutation
Note: Certain mutated forms of some words can never occur in standard Welsh.
R. J. Thomas, G. A. Bevan, P. J. Donovan, A. Hawke et al., editors (1950–present), “a- ”, inGeiriadur Prifysgol Cymru Online (in Welsh), University of Wales Centre for Advanced Welsh & Celtic Studies FromProto-Bantu *gá-
a- (medial wa-
they ;class 6 subject concord. FromProto-Bantu *gáá-
a-
of ;class 6 possessive concord. (Thisetymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at theEtymology scriptorium .)
a-
Class 6 relative concord. FromProto-Bantu *nkà-
a-
not Used in the indicative mood, prefixed to the subject concord.
a-
3rd person singular subject concord. Variant orthographies ALIV a- Brazilian standard a- New Tribes a-
a-
allomorph oföt- ( detransitivizing prefix ) allomorph ofö- ( second-person prefix ) used for stems that begin with a consonant and have a first vowela ore Ye'kwana personal markers
pronoun noun possessor/ postposition object series I verb argument transitive patient intransitive patient-like intransitive agent-like transitive agent first person ewü y- ∅- ,ü- u- 1 w- wi- first person dual inclusive küwü k- kü- ku- ki- k- kii- ki- 1 second person amödö ö- öy- ödh- o- oy- odh- a- ay- adh- m- mi- first person dual exclusive nña y- dh- ch- ∅- ,i- 1 chö- ∅- n- ni- third person tüwü n- ni- distant past third person — kün- kun- kin- ken- küm- kum- kim- kini- coreferential/reflexive — t- tü- tu- ti- te- — reciprocal — — öö- With following vowel lengthened if in an unreduced open syllable.
series I verb argument: first person > second person mön- man- mon- möm- möni- first person dual exclusive > second person second person > first person k- kü- ku- ki- second person > first person dual exclusive third person > any person X …or … any person X > third person see person X in the chart above
FromMiddle English a- ( “ on ” ) , derived from unstressedMiddle English an ( “ on ” ) , fromOld English an ( “ on ” ) .
a-
in ,on ,at ; used to show a state, condition, or manner.FromProto-Bantu *à-
á- (medial ká-
he ,she ,it ;class 1 subject concord, used in the subjunctive and potential mood. FromProto-Bantu *gá-
á- (medial wá-
they ;class 6 subject concord. FromProto-Bantu *gáá-
a-
of ;class 6 possessive concord. Originally a reduced form ofla- ( “ general demonstrative ” ) . Compare Swazi relative forms such aslesi- l- .
ā́-
Used to form relative clauses. This prefix has conditioned allomorphso- ande- .
Froma- ( “ relative ” ) +a- ( “ class 6 ” ) .
ā́-
Class 6 relative concord. FromProto-Bantu *nkà-
a-
not Used in the indicative mood, prefixed to the subject concord.
a-
alternative form ofma- ( hortative ) 
, from Proto-Sinaitic
, fromEgyptian𓃾.
