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alpha

noun · adjective

Simple meaning

The name of the first letter of the Greek alphabet, followed by beta.

Pronunciation

Say it like this:

alfuh

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US device voice
IPA pronunciation (US)

ˈælfə

This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.

IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.

Word Review

Definition

Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.

noun

  1. The name of the first letter of the Greek alphabet (Α, α), followed by beta. In the Latin alphabet it is the predecessor to A.

  2. sciences

    The name of the symbols Α and α used in science and mathematics, often interchangeable with the symbols when used as a prefix.

  3. A person, especially a male, who is dominant, successful and attractive.

  4. A ghost town in California, United States (USA).

  5. Former name of the International Space Station.

  6. Alternative letter-case form of Alpha ("member of Generation Alpha"). [A placename.]

adjective

  1. Designates the first in an order of precedence.

  2. Pertaining to, furnished with, or expressed by letters of the alphabet.

Word at a Glance

Difficulty
A1 · Beginner (estimated)
Frequency
Common
Typical Use
Varies by meaning

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Common Patterns and Combinations

How this word naturally appears with others.

Name / latin

kappa alphasigma alphaphi alpha

Significance

alpha channel

Ghost

alpha rhythm

Other combinations

alpha particlealpha deltaalpha chi

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Word Family

Related forms, grouped by how they connect.

Compound terms

Established multiword terms.

  • alpha bronzenounCompound term

    An alloy of copper and tin that can be worked.

  • alpha centaurinounCompound term

    Brightest star in Centaurus.

  • alpha crucisnounCompound term

    The brightest star in the Southern Cross.

  • alpha decaynounCompound term

    Radioactive decay of an atomic nucleus that is accompanied by the emission of an alpha particle.

  • alpha fetoproteinnounCompound term

    An abnormally large amount of this fetoprotein in the fetus can signal an abnormality of the neural tube (as spina bifida or anencephaly).

  • alpha foetoproteinnounCompound term

    An abnormally large amount of this fetoprotein in the fetus can signal an abnormality of the neural tube (as spina bifida or anencephaly).

Related Words

Connected to the same idea, not synonyms.

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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.