el - Wiktionary, the free dictionary (original) (raw)
From Wiktionary, the free dictionary
Clipping of Greek Ελληνικά (Elliniká) or abbreviation of Ancient Greek Ἑλληνική (Hellēnikḗ).
el
el on Wikipedia
From Middle English, from Old English el, from Latin el (the name of the letter L).
el (plural els)
- The name of the Latin script letter L/l.
- 1773 October, The Monthly Review Or Literary Journal Enlarged:
The word length, which contains only four sounds l e ng th, is usually spell'd thus, el ee en gee tee aitch.
- 1773 October, The Monthly Review Or Literary Journal Enlarged:
name of the letter L, l
Arabic: إِل m (ʔel)
Bulgarian: ел m (el)
Chinese:
Mandarin: (English letter names are called as in English, no other standard Mandarin name exists)Greek: ελ n (el)
Hawaiian: lā
Interlingua: please add this translation if you can
Korean: 엘 (el)
Marathi: एल (el)
Occitan: èla f
Tagalog: el (tl), la (tl) (Abakada), ele (tl) (Abecedario alphabet)
Volapük: please add this translation if you can
(Latin-script letter names) letter; a, bee, cee, dee, e, ef, gee, aitch, i, jay, kay, el, em, en, o, pee, cue, ar, ess, tee, u, vee, double-u, ex, wye, zee / zed
(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)
el (plural els)
- (US) An elevated railway, especially for specific systems such as the metro in Chicago (informal)
- 2012, Roger P. Roess, Gene Sansone, The Wheels That Drove New York, page 294:
The main section of the Sixth Avenue El from Morris Street to Ninth Avenue and 53rd Street shut down on December 4, 1938.
- 2012, Roger P. Roess, Gene Sansone, The Wheels That Drove New York, page 294:
Shortening of eleven.
el
- The cardinal number occurring after dek and before do in a duodecimal system. Written ↋, decimal value 11.
el
- (informal, humorous, chiefly Internet slang) The (sometimes where "the" would not occur in normal English).
- 2007, Richard Bachman, Blaze, page 125:
" […] A sister of Joseph Gerard […] was found unconscious on the kitchen floor by the family cook early this morning. […] "
[…] What leads could they have, if the old lady was el zonko?
- 2007, Richard Bachman, Blaze, page 125:
- le (French borrowing)
(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)
el (plural els)
- The name of the Cyrillic script letter Л / л
el
From Latin ille, possibly through a Vulgar Latin *illus. Compare Romanian el, Megleno-Romanian iel.
el m (plural elj)
el m
- (long/stressed accusative form) him
- ea/ia (feminine equivalent (third-person singular nominative))
- elj (masculine or mixed plural), eali (feminine plural)
- ãl/ul/lu (masculine singular accusative- short/unstressed form)
- (a) lui (masculine singular genitive and masculine singular dative- long/stressed form)
- ãlj/ilj/lji (masculine singular dative- short/unstressed form)
- io/iou, mini (first-person singular)
- tu, tini (second-person singular)
- noi (first-person plural)
- voi (second-person plural)
- nãsh, elj (third-person (masculine or mixed) plural)
Inherited from Old Leonese el, elo, from Latin ille, illum.
el m sg (feminine la, neuter lo, masculine plural los, feminine plural les)
- (definite) the
The article el contracts to l’ before a word beginning with a vowel or h: l'asturianu (the Asturian), l'hermanu (the brother)
The article el contracts to ’l after a word that ends in a vowel, if the following word begins with a consonant.
Inherited from Old Anatolian Turkish ایل (ẹl), from Proto-Turkic *ēl.
el (definite accusative eli, plural ellər)
- (somewhat poetic) people
- (somewhat poetic) country, land
- (somewhat poetic) tract, region, district, province
(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)
el
- e (preposition “in”) + ul (indefinite article “a(n)”)
- e (preposition “in”) + al (definite article “the”)
From earlier lo, from Latin illum, from Latin ille. The initial e- was inserted as an epenthetic vowel after the unstressed -o had begun to be dropped.
el m (feminine la, masculine plural els, feminine plural les)
- the; definite article
El pare i el fill ― The father and the son - neuter definite article used to make abstract nouns from adjectives; the; what, that which
el bo i el dolent ― the good and the bad
el que hem de fer ― what we have to do
- Before a word that begins with a vowel or silent h- followed by a vowel, the form l' is used.
- en, masculine singular definite article for given names.
el (proclitic, contracted l', enclitic lo, contracted enclitic 'l)
- him (direct object)
- el is the reinforced (reforçada) form of the pronoun. It is used before verbs beginning with a consonant.
Ella el considerava estúpid. ― She regarded him as stupid.
Catalan personal pronouns and clitics
| | | strong/subject | weak (direct object) | weak (indirect object) | possessive | | | | | | ----------------------------------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------ | ----------------------------------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------ | ------------------------------------------------------------------ | ------------------------------------------------------------------ | ------------------------------------------------------------------ | ------------------------------------------------------------ | ------------------------------ | | proclitic | enclitic | proclitic | enclitic | | | | | | | singular | 1stperson | standard | jo, mi3 | em, m’ | -me, ’m | em, m’ | -me, ’m | meu | | majestic1 | nós | ens | -nos, ’ns | ens | -nos, ’ns | nostre | | | | 2ndperson | standard | tu | et, t’ | -te, ’t | et, t’ | -te, ’t | teu | | | formal1 | vós | us | -vos, -us | us | -vos, -us | vostre | | | | very formal2 | vostè | el, l’ | -lo, ’l | li | -li | seu | | | | 3rdperson | m | ell | el, l’ | -lo, ’l | li | -li | seu | | | f | ella | la, l’4 | -la | li | -li | seu | | | | n | | ho | -ho | li | -li | seu | | | | plural | | | | | | | | | | 1st person | nosaltres | ens | -nos, ’ns | ens | -nos, ’ns | nostre | | | | 2ndperson | standard | vosaltres | us | -vos, -us | us | -vos, -us | vostre | | | formal2 | vostès | els | -los, ’ls | els | -los, ’ls | seu | | | | 3rdperson | m | ells | els | -los, ’ls | els | -los, ’ls | seu | | | f | elles | les | -les | els | -los, ’ls | seu | | | | 3rd person reflexive | si | es, s’ | -se, ’s | es, s’ | -se, ’s | seu | | | | adverbial | ablative/genitive | | en, n’ | -ne, ’n | | | | | | locative | | hi | -hi | | | | | |
1 Behaves grammatically as plural. 2 Behaves grammatically as third person.
3 Only as object of a preposition. 4 Not before unstressed (h)i-, (h)u-.
- “el”, in Diccionari de la llengua catalana [Dictionary of the Catalan Language] (in Catalan), second edition, Institute of Catalan Studies [Catalan: Institut d'Estudis Catalans], April 2007
- “el”, in Gran Diccionari de la Llengua Catalana, Grup Enciclopèdia Catalana, 2026
- “el” in Diccionari normatiu valencià, Acadèmia Valenciana de la Llengua.
- Alcover, Antoni Maria; Moll, Francesc de Borja (1963), “el”, in Diccionari català-valencià-balear (in Catalan)
Inherited from Spanish el (“masculine singular definite article; the”).
el
- direct marker for all nouns other than personal proper nouns
From Middle Cornish êl, eyl, eal, from Old Cornish ail, from Proto-Brythonic *angel, a borrowing from Latin angelus, from Ancient Greek ἄγγελος (ángelos). Cognate with Breton ael, Welsh angel.
el m (plural eledh)
(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)
 |
This entry needs pronunciation information. If you are familiar with the IPA then please add some! |
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el
- Mirjejev, V. A.; Usejinov, S. M. (2002), Ukrajinsʹko-krymsʹkotatarsʹkyj slovnyk [Ukrainian – Crimean Tatar Dictionary][1], Simferopol: Dolya, →ISBN
- IPA(key): [ˈɛl]
el n (indeclinable)
- The name of the Latin script letter L/l.
- “el”, in Příruční slovník jazyka českého (in Czech), 1935–1957
- “el”, in Slovník spisovného jazyka českého (in Czech), 1960–1971, 1989
- lo
el
- the; masculine singular definite article
From Old Norse elri (“alder”), cf. ǫlr (compare Icelandic elri, Swedish al, Norwegian Bokmål older), from Proto-Germanic *aluz, *alusō (compare English alder), variant of *alizō, *alisō (compare Dutch els, German Erle), from Proto-Indo-European *h₂élisos.
el c (singular definite ellen, plural indefinite elle)
Introduced in the 1940’s after Swedish el, abbreviation of elektricitet (“electricity”).
el c (singular definite ellen, not used in plural form)
- electricity
Synonym: strøm
From Middle Dutch elne, elle, from Old Dutch *elina, from Proto-West Germanic *alinu. Cognate with English ell, German Low German Ell, German Elle.
el c (plural ellen, diminutive elletje n)
- elleboog
- ellepijp
- ellenlang
- Negerhollands: el
- → Caribbean Javanese: élo
- → Sundanese: élo
- IPA(key): /el/
- Hyphenation: el
el (personal)
Obscure; may be derived from Latin ex (“out of”).
el
- made of
Tio estas ĉemizo el silko ― This is a shirt made of silk. - from (of)
Antonym: al
El kie vi venis?
Mi venis el Nov-Jorko.
Where did you come from?
I came from New York.- 1906, Louis de Beaufront, Grammaire et exercices de la langue internationale espéranto:
Li estas la plej riĉa homo el la mondo.
He is the richest man in the world. - 1906, Louis de Beaufront, Grammaire et exercices de la langue internationale espéranto:
Li estas la malplej riĉa el ni.
He is the least rich of us.
- 1906, Louis de Beaufront, Grammaire et exercices de la langue internationale espéranto:
“el”, in Plena Ilustrita Vortaro de Esperanto [Complete Illustrated Dictionary of Esperanto], 2020, →ISBN
“el”, in Reta Vortaro [Online Dictionary] (in Esperanto), 1997-2026
el m sg (plural elis, feminine ela, feminine plural elas)
- Third person singular masculine nominative pronoun; he
- Valeš, Miroslav (2021), Diccionariu de A Fala: lagarteiru, mañegu, valverdeñu (web)[2], 2nd edition, Minde, Portugal: CIDLeS, published 2022, →ISBN, page 121
el f (postpositive -el) (ORB, broad)
Franco-Provençal personal pronouns
| | | nominative | accusative | dative | tonic1 | possessive2 | | ---------- | --------------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------ | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | --------------------------------------- | --------------------------------------- | | singular | 1st person | jo | mè | min | | | 2nd person | te | tè | tin | | | | 3rd person | masculine | il | lo / le | lui | sin | | feminine | el | la | lyé | | | | neuter | o | y | — | | | | reflexive | — | sè | | | | | | | | | | | | plural | 1st person | nos | noutro | | | | 2nd person | vos | voutro | | | | | 3rd person | masculine | ils | los / les | lor | lor | | feminine | els | les | lor / lyés | | | | reflexive | — | sè | | | |
1 Disjunctive or object of a preposition. 2 Generally preceded by a definite article.
- elle [1] in DicoFranPro: Dictionnaire Français/Francoprovençal – on dicofranpro.llm.umontreal.ca
- el in Lo trèsor Arpitan – on arpitan.eu
| Cyrillic | ел |
|---|
el
Inherited from Old Anatolian Turkish ال (el), from Proto-Turkic *elig. Compare Turkish el, Azerbaijani əl
el (definite accusative eli, plural ellär)
- el eli yıkêêr
- el etmää
- el işi
- el koymaa
- el vermää
- eldä etmää
- eldiven
- ellemää
- ellik
- tez eldän iş tez olêr
Inherited from Old Anatolian Turkish یل (yẹl), from Proto-Turkic *yẹl. Compare Turkish and Azerbaijani yel.
el (definite accusative eli, plural ellär)
Inherited from Old Anatolian Turkish ایل (ẹl), from Proto-Turkic *ēl. Compare Turkish el.
el (definite accusative eli, plural ellär)
N. A Baskakov, editor (1972), “ел”, in Gagauzsko-Russko-Moldavskij Slovarʹ [Gagauz-Russian-Moldovan Dictionary], Moskva: Izdatelʹstvo Sovetskaja Enciklopedija, →ISBN, page 175
Çebotar, Petri; Dron, Ion (2002), “el”, in Gagauzça-Rusça-Romınca Sözlük [Gagauz-Russian-Romanian Dictionary], Chișinău: Pontos Press, →ISBN, page 234
Kopuşçu M. İ., Todorova S. A., Kiräkova T.İ., editors (2019), “el”, in Gagauzça-rusça sözlük: klaslar 5-12, Komrat: Gagauziya M.V. Maruneviç adına Bilim-Aaraştırma merkezi, →ISBN, page 61
el m (accusative o, dative lle)
- he
- it (impersonal pronoun, optative subject of impersonal verbs)
El chove ― It rains - it (optatively, can introduce a question)
- 1864, Francisco Mirás, Compendio de gramática gallega-castellana, page 60:
Gallego. —O peor son os trabucos que abranquen todos os anos que si non fora eso, inda eu estale si o pechaba no que puxen.
Hacendado. -¿Pues qué, cuántos trabucos tiene V?
Gallego. —Carasto, inda no me chejan os emprejos da Corte para pajálos.
Hacendado. -Vaya V. al diablo con sus trabucos emprejos y lenguaje, que maldito entiendo palabra. A Dios amigo.
Gallego. —El oieu? veña acó Señor, eu lle nomearei todo polo craro.
Galician. "The worst part is the tributes they snatch every year; if not for them, I'm damned if I don't win it on what I bid!"
Landlord [speaking Spanish and misunderstanding what he said]. "So, how many blunderbusses do you have?"
Galician. "Jis! The cattle in my stable is not even enough to pay for them!
Landlord. "Go to hell with your blunderbusses, emprejos and language, I can't understand a word!
Galician. "[Anyone] Did you hear that? Sir, come here! I'll explain all clearly to you!"
(the text is full of false friends for a Spanish speaker)
- 1864, Francisco Mirás, Compendio de gramática gallega-castellana, page 60:
The accusative form o has variant forms lo and no. These alternative forms appear depending on the ending of the preceding word. The form lo is used when the preceding word ends in -r or -s. The no form is used when the preceding word ends in -u or a diphthong. These alternative forms are then suffixed to the preceding word.
The accusative also forms contractions when it immediately follows an indirect object pronoun. For example, dou che o contracts to doucho (“I gave it to you”).
Seoane, Ernesto Xosé González; Granja, María Álvarez de la; Agrelo, Ana Isabel Boullón (2006–2022), “el”, in Dicionario de Dicionarios do galego medieval [Dictionary of dictionaries of Medieval Galician] (in Galician), Santiago de Compostela: Instituto da Lingua Galega
Antón Luís Santamarina Fernández, editor (2006–2013), “el”, in Dicionario de Dicionarios da lingua galega [Dictionary of Dictionaries of the Galician language] (in Galician), Santiago de Compostela: Instituto da Lingua Galega
Antón Luís Santamarina Fernández, Ernesto Xosé González Seoane, María Álvarez de la Granja, editors (2003–2018), “el”, in Tesouro informatizado da lingua galega (in Galician), Santiago de Compostela: Instituto da Lingua Galega
Rosario Álvarez Blanco, editor (2014–2024), “el”, in Tesouro do léxico patrimonial galego e portugués (in Galician), Santiago de Compostela: Instituto da Lingua Galega, →ISSN
Guinea-Bissau Creole
[edit]
From Portuguese ele. Cognate with Kabuverdianu el.
el
(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)
el
- off
El a kezekkel! ― Hands off! - away
- yes (used as an affirmative answer to a question containing a verb prefixed with el- or to emphasize a preceding statement, having the same value as the verb in question)
A: Eladtátok a házat? - B: El. ― A: Did you sell the house? B: Yes.
This term may also be part of the split form of a verb prefixed with el-, occurring when the main verb does not follow the prefix directly. It can be interpreted only with the related verb form, irrespective of its position in the sentence, e.g. meg tudták volna nézni (“they could have seen it”, from megnéz). For verbs with this prefix, see el-; for an overview, Appendix:Hungarian verbal prefixes.
el
- (intransitive, drama) exit, exeunt; he/she leaves or they leave the scene or stage (stage direction for an actor or multiple actors)
Antonym: jön (“s/he comes”)
el in Géza Bárczi, László Országh, et al., editors, A magyar nyelv értelmező szótára [The Explanatory Dictionary of the Hungarian Language] (ÉrtSz.), Budapest: Akadémiai Kiadó, 1959–1962. Fifth ed., 1992: →ISBN.
el in Nóra Ittzés, editor, A magyar nyelv nagyszótára [A Comprehensive Dictionary of the Hungarian Language] (Nszt.), Budapest: Akadémiai Kiadó, 2006–2031 (work in progress; published a–ez as of 2026).
Rhymes: -ɛːl
el
el (plural eli, possessive elua, possessive plural elui)
èl (plural **el-el)
- The name of the Latin script letter L/l.
- (Latin-script letter names) huruf; a, be, ce, de, e, ef, ge, ha, i, je, ka, el, em, en, o, pe, ki, er, es, te, u, ve, we, eks, ye, zet
- “el”, in Kamus Besar Bahasa Indonesia [Great Dictionary of the Indonesian Language] (in Indonesian), Jakarta: Agency for Language Development and Cultivation – Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology of the Republic of Indonesia, 2016
el
- he third-person singular masculine personal pronoun
- 1877, Antonio Ive, Canti popolari istriani: raccolti a Rovigno, volume 5, Ermanno Loescher, page 128:
Ch’in tu’l su’ fassulito el me metasse.
That into his handkerchief he would put me.
- 1877, Antonio Ive, Canti popolari istriani: raccolti a Rovigno, volume 5, Ermanno Loescher, page 128:
el m sg (feminine la)
Inherited from Latin illum with deletion of second syllable.
- IPA(key): /ˈel/
- Rhymes: -el
- Hyphenation: él
- (stressed, determiner) IPA(key): /ˈel/
- Hyphenation: él
- (unstressed, article and contraction) IPA(key): /el/
el m sg
el m
el
el
- (religion) hell
- 2012, Di Jamiekan Nyuu Testiment, Edinburgh: DJB, published 2012, →ISBN, Matyu 5:29:
Ef unu rait yai a mek unu sin, tier it out an dash it we! Aftaraal it beta fi luuz onggl wan badi paat, dan di wol a di badi get fling dong a el.
If your right eye makes you sin, gouge it out and throw it away! After all, it is better to lose one body part than for the whole body to be thrown into hell.
- 2012, Di Jamiekan Nyuu Testiment, Edinburgh: DJB, published 2012, →ISBN, Matyu 5:29:
From Portuguese ele.
el
Inherited from Proto-Berber.
el (verbal noun ayla) (obsolete)
This verb's conjugation has fallen into general disuse by the 19th century, with only its past participle ilan surviving in various expressions. Its verbal noun, ayla (“possession”), remains in vigorous use.
- Dallet, Jean-Marie (1982), Dictionnaire kabyle-français: parler des At Mangellat, Algérie (in French), Paris, France
el (intransitive)
Conjugation of el
| | singular | plural | | | | | | | -------------------- | ---------- | ---------- | ---------- | ---------- | ---------- | ------ | | 1st person | 2nd person | 3rd person | 1st person | 2nd person | 3rd person | | | present | yinel | yatel | nel | yojel | yixel | yeʼel | | past | xinel | xatel | xel | xojel | xixel | xeʼel | | future | xkinel | xkatel | xtel | xkojel | xkixel | xkeʼel | | imperative/hortative | kinel | katel | tel | kojel | kixel | keʼel |
el (Hebrew spelling איל, plural los, feminine la)
- the (masculine singular)
el (Hebrew spelling איל)
- (Classical Latin) IPA(key): [ˈɛɫ]
- (modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA(key): [ˈɛl]
el f (indeclinable)
- The name of the letter L.
- Multiple Latin names for the letter L, l have been suggested. The most common is el or a syllabic l, although there is some evidence which also supports, as names for the letter, lē, ll, əl, lə, and even (in the fourth- or fifth-century first Antinoë papyrus(Can this(+) etymology be sourced?), which gives Greek transliterations of the Latin names of the Roman alphabet’s letters) ιλλε (ille).
- (Latin-script letter names) littera; ā, bē, cē, dē, ē, ef, gē, hā / *acca, ī, kā, el, em, en, ō, pē, kū, er, es, tē, ū, ix / īx / ex, ȳ / ī graeca / ȳpsīlon, zēta
- “el”, in Gaffiot, Félix (1934), Dictionnaire illustré latin-français, Hachette.
- Arthur E. Gordon, The Letter Names of the Latin Alphabet (University of California Press, 1973; volume 9 of University of California Publications: Classical Studies), especially pages 30–31, 42–44, and 63
- IPA(key): [ɛl]
el m (invariable)
- The Latvian name of the Latin script letter L/l.
- Latvian letter names:
a (A), garais ā (Ā), bē (B), cē (C), čē (Č), dē (D), e (E), garais ē (Ē), ef (F), gā (G), ģē (Ģ), hā (H), i (I), garais ī (Ī), jē (J), kā (K), ķē (Ķ), el (L), eļ (Ļ), em (M), en (N), eņ (Ņ), o (O), pē (P), er (R), es (S), eš (Š), tē (T), u (U), garais ū (Ū), vē (V), zē (Z), žē (Ž)
el m sg (feminine la, neuter lu, masculine plural los, feminine plural les)
- the (definite article)
- The prepositions a, de, pa, cun, en and pur contract with el, unless el is part of a proper noun.
_a_ + el → _al_
_de_ + el → _del_
_pa_ + el → _pal_
_cun_ + el → _cul_
_en_ + el → _nel_
_pur_ + el → _pul_ - The article el contracts to l' before a word beginning with a vowel or h:
l'home ― the man
fala l'home ― the man is speaking - The article 'el contracts to 'l after a word that ends in a vowel, if the following word begins with a consonant.
fala'l neñu ― the child is speaking - IPA(key): /ɛl/
el m inan
- The name of the Latin script letter l/L.
- (Latin-script letter names) a, bej, cej, čet, ćej, dej, ej, ět, ef, gej, ha, cha, i, jot, ka, eł, el, em, en, ejn, o, pej, er, ejŕ, es, eš, śej, tej, u, wej, y, zet, žet, źej
From Old Dutch *elli, from Proto-West Germanic *alljas.
el
el
- “el (I)”, in Vroegmiddelnederlands Woordenboek, 2000
- “el, els”, in Vroegmiddelnederlands Woordenboek, 2000
- Verwijs, E.; Verdam, J. (1885–1929), “el (I)”, in Middelnederlandsch Woordenboek, The Hague: Martinus Nijhoff, →ISBN, page I
- Verwijs, E.; Verdam, J. (1885–1929), “el (II)”, in Middelnederlandsch Woordenboek, The Hague: Martinus Nijhoff, →ISBN, page II
- eel, ele, hele, iel, yele
From Old English ǣl, from Proto-West Germanic *āl, from Proto-Germanic *ēlaz.
el (plural eles)
- alger
- English: eel
- Scots: eel
- Yola: eale
- “ēl(e, n.(3).”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007, retrieved 3 March 2019.
- IPA(key): /eːl/
el
el
From Proto-Kuki-Chin *ʔel (“to challenge”).
el
- to compete
el
- to dress up for an occasion
- Lorrain, J. Herbert (1940), “el”, in Dictionary of the Lushai language, Calcutta: Asiatic Society
el
- short form of elektrisitet, elektrisk, elektro-, used mainly in compound words. It is treated as a noun rather than a prefix, in the same manner as Swedish.
el n
- short form of elektrisitet, elektrisk, elektro-, used mainly in compound words. It is treated as a noun rather than a prefix, in the same manner as Swedish.
el n (definite singular elet, indefinite plural **el, definite plural ela)
- This term needs a translation to English. Please help out and add a translation, then remove the text
{{[rfdef](/wiki/Template:rfdef#top "Template:rfdef")}}.
See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.
el
See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.
el
- “el” in The Nynorsk Dictionary.
From Old Occitan [Term?], from Latin ille.
el
el m
- The name of the Latin script letter L/l.
- alternative form of ǣl
Strong _a_-stem:
el
- contraction of en + le, literally “in the”
- c. 1250, Marie de France, Equitan:
m'est une anguisse el quer ferue, ki tut le cors me fet trembler
Such a pain has pierced me in the heart, that it makes my whole body quiver
- c. 1250, Marie de France, Equitan:
el
Old Galician-Portuguese
[edit]
el
- apocopic form of ele
- fugiu con el a Egipto. terra de Reẏ Faraon.
ran away with him to Egypt, land of the Pharaoh king.
- fugiu con el a Egipto. terra de Reẏ Faraon.
el
Phonetic spelling of the letter.
el n (indeclinable)
- The name of the Latin script letter L/l.
From Latin ille. Akin to Catalan el and Spanish el. False cognate of Arabic ال (al-).
el m sg
- “el”, in Dicionário Aulete Digital (in Portuguese), Rio de Janeiro: Lexikon Editora Digital, 2008–2026
- “el”, in Dicionário Priberam da Língua Portuguesa (in Portuguese), Lisbon: Priberam, 2008–2026
- ел (el) — post-1930s Cyrillic spelling
Inherited from Vulgar Latin *illus, from Latin ille.
el m (third-person singular, plural ei, feminine equivalent ea)
Declension of el
| | stressed | unstressed | | | ---------------- | --------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ----------------------------------------- | | nominative | el | | | accusative | el | îl | | dative | lui | îi | | genitive | lui | | | | | | | possessive forms | | | | | singular | plural | | | masculine | său | săi | | neuter | sale | | | feminine | sa | | | | | | | reflexive forms | | | | | stressed | unstressed | | | accusative | sine | se | | dative | sie, sieși | își |
el m (stressed accusative form of **el)
- (direct object, preceded by preposition, such as "pe", "cu", "la", or "pentru") him
- ea (third-person feminine singular)
- ei (third-person masculine plural)
- ele (third-person feminine plural)
- “el”, in DEX online—Dicționare ale limbii române (Dictionaries of the Romanian language) (in Romanian), 2004–2026
el
Cognate with Turkmen, Turkish el (“hand”), Azerbaijani əl, Chuvash алӑ (ală), etc.
el (3rd person possessive ili, plural eller)
Declension of el
| | singular | plural | | | ------------------- | ------ | ---------------------------------- | | nominative | el | eller | | genitive | elniği | ellerniği | | dative | ele | ellere | | definite accusative | elni | ellerni | | locative | elde | ellerde | | ablative | elden | ellerden | | instrumental | ella | ellerla | | pronominal | elği | ellerği | | indefinite article | el-or | eller-or | | definite article | elcük | ellercük |
Possessive declension of el
| | nominative | | | | ---------------------------------------------------------- | --------- | ------------ | | | singular | plural | | | miniği ("my") | ilim | ilimler | | siniği ("your") | iliñ | iliñler | | aniği ("their") | ili | ililer | | piserniği ("our") | ilimiz | ilimizler | | selerniği ("your") | iliñiz | iliñizler | | ularniği ("their") | ili | ililer | | | accusative | | | | | singular | plural | | | miniği ("my") | ilimni | ilimlerni | | siniği ("your") | iliñni | iliñlerni | | aniği ("their") | ilini | ililerni | | piserniği ("our") | ilimizni | ilimizlerni | | selerniği ("your") | iliñizni | iliñizlerni | | ularniği ("their") | ilini | ililerni | | | dative | | | | | singular | plural | | | miniği ("my") | ilime | ilimlere | | siniği ("your") | iliñe | iliñlere | | aniği ("their") | iliğe | ililere | | piserniği ("our") | ilimize | ilimizlere | | selerniği ("your") | iliñize | iliñizlere | | ularniği ("their") | iliğe | ililere | | | locative | | | | | singular | plural | | | miniği ("my") | ilimde | ilimlerde | | siniği ("your") | iliñde | iliñlerde | | aniği ("their") | ilide | ililerde | | piserniği ("our") | ilimizde | ilimizlerde | | selerniği ("your") | iliñizde | iliñizlerde | | ularniği ("their") | ilide | ililerde | | | ablative | | | | | singular | plural | | | miniği ("my") | ilimden | ilimlerden | | siniği ("your") | iliñden | iliñlerden | | aniği ("their") | iliden | ililerden | | piserniği ("our") | ilimizden | ilimizlerden | | selerniği ("your") | iliñizden | iliñizlerden | | ularniği ("their") | iliden | ililerden | | | instrumental | | | | | singular | plural | | | miniği ("my") | ilimla | ilimlerla | | siniği ("your") | iliñla | iliñlerla | | aniği ("their") | ilila | ililerla | | piserniği ("our") | ilimizla | ilimizlerla | | selerniği ("your") | iliñizla | iliñizlerla | | ularniği ("their") | ilila | ililerla |
- Potanin, G.N. (1893), “эль”, in Тангутско-Тибетская окраина Китая и Центральная Монголия [_Tangutsko-Tibetskaja okraina Kitaja i Centralʹnaja Mongolija_] (in Russian), page 428
- Poyarkov, Alexei; Ladygin, Vasiliy (1893), “эль”, in “Салары. Этнографический очерк [Salary. Etnografičeskij očerk, The Salars: An Ethnographic Sketch]”, in Этнографическое ОбозрѢніе: Императорскаго Общества Любителей Естествознанія, Антропологіи и Этнографіи [Etnografičeskoje ObozrĚnije: Imperatorskago Obščestva Ljubitelej Jestestvoznanija, Antropologii i Etnografii, Ethnographical Review: Imperial Society of Lovers of Natural History, Anthropology and Ethnography][4] (in Russian), Moscow: Publication of the Ethnographic Department, page 33
- Rockhill, William Woodville (1894), “ell”, in Diary of a journey through Mongolia and Tibet in 1891 and 1892, Washington: Smithsonian Institution, page ell
- Poppe, Nicholas (1953). Remarks on The Salar Language. Harvard Journal of Asiatic Studies, 16(3/4), 438–477. [5]
- Kakuk, S. (1962), “el”, in “Un vocabulaire Salar”, in Acta Orientalia Academiae Scientiarum Hungaricae[6], volume 14, number 2, Akadémiai Kiadó, →ISBN, pages 173-196
- Tenishev, Edhem (1976), “el”, in Stroj salárskovo jazyká [Grammar of Salar], Moscow: Nauka, pages 323-324
- 林莲云 [Lin Lianyun] (1985), “el”, in 撒拉语简志 [A Brief History of Salar][7], Beijing: 民族出版社: 琴書店, →OCLC, page 19
- Yakup, Abdurishid (2002), “el”, in An Ili Salar Vocabulary: Introduction and a Provisional Salar-English Lexicon[8], Tokyo: University of Tokyo, →ISBN, page 88
- Dwyer, Arienne M. (2007), “el”, in Salar: A Study in Inner Asian Language Contact Processes: Part I: Phonology[9], 1st edition, Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz Verlag, →ISBN, pages 43, 87
- 阿伊草·张进锋 [Salar: Ayso Cañ Cinfen] (2008), 乌璐别格 [Salar: Ulubeğ], 鄭初陽 [Salar: Çuyañ Yebey oğlı Ceñ], editors, 撒拉尔谚语 [Salar: Salar İbret Sözler, Salar Proverbs][10], China Salar Youth League, page 12
- Ma, Chengjun; Han, Lianye; Ma, Weisheng (December 2010), “el”, in 米娜瓦尔·艾比布拉 [Minavar Abibra], editor, 撒维汉词典 [Sā-Wéi-Hàn cídiǎn, Salar-Uyghur-Chinese dictionary] (in Chinese), 1st edition, Beijing, →ISBN, page 99
- “el” in Ölmez, Mehmet (December 2012), “Oğuzların En Doğudaki Kolu: Salırlar ve Dilleri [The Easternmost Branch of the Oghuzs: Salars and Their Language]”, in Türk Dili (in Turkish), volume CII, number 732, pages 38-43
- 马伟 [Ma Wei], 朝克 [Chaoke] (2014), “el”, in 撒拉语366条会话读本 [Salar 366 Conversation Reader][11], 1st edition, 社会科学文献出版社 [Social Science Literature Press], →ISBN, page 108
- 马伟 [Ma Wei] (2016), “el”, in 濒危语言——撒拉语研究 [Endangered Languages - Salar Language Studies], 青海 [Qīnghǎi, Qinghai]: 青海师范大学 [Qinghai Normal University], unpublished finalized project manuscript (国家社会科学基金项目结项稿, 定稿; National Social Science Fund of China), page 107
- IPA(key): /el/ [el]
- Rhymes: -el
- IPA(key): /eɾ/ (Andalusia, before certain consonants)
- Rhymes: -eɾ
- IPA(key): /e/ (dialectal, rapid speech, except before vowels)
- Rhymes: -e
- Syllabification: el
- Homophone: él
From Latin ille. False cognate of Arabic ال (al-).
el (plural los, feminine la, feminine plural las, neuter lo)
- masculine singular definite article; the
- 2025 June 20, Randi Kaye and David von Blohn, “El ICE renueva acuerdo con el centro de detención que, según la agencia, no cumplía las normas”, in CNN en Español[12]:
En un correo electrónico, el ICE dijo a CNN que había determinado que Glades puede ayudar a “despejar la acumulación” de inmigrantes indocumentados en el país.
(please add an English translation of this quotation)
- 2025 June 20, Randi Kaye and David von Blohn, “El ICE renueva acuerdo con el centro de detención que, según la agencia, no cumplía las normas”, in CNN en Español[12]:
The prepositions de and a contract with el, unless el is part of a proper noun.
El libro del niño me enseñó sobre la oscilación de El Niño.
The boy's book taught me about the oscillation of El Niño.
Fuimos a El Salvador y le rezamos al Salvador.
We went to El Salvador and prayed to the Savior.Spanish definite articles are used in some contexts where English uses possessive pronouns.
Tengo las manos sucias.
My hands are dirty.
Me duele la pierna.
My leg hurts.Spanish definite articles are used when talking about a whole group in general or abstract notions, unlike English ones.
Los guepardos son el animal terrestre más veloz.
Cheetahs are the fastest land animal.
El amor es siempre paciente y amable.
Love is always patient and kind.In Andalusia, definite articles are commonly used before people's names, for example:
¿Te has enterado de lo que le ha pasado a la Lucía?
Did you hear about what happened to Lucía?
From Old Spanish ela, from Latin illa.
el (feminine plural las)
- feminine singular definite article used before nouns which start with a stressed /a/:
el alma, las almas ― the soul, the souls
el hacha, las hachas ― the axe, the axes
- “el”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.8.1, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 15 December 2025
- le
A contraction of elektricitet or elektrisk, that must have taken place between 1920 and 1975. SAOB (letter E edited in 1921) does not mention this, but does mention the prefix elektro-. Lilla Focus (1961) mentions el- as a prefix, but not as a word of its own.
The use of el as a stand-alone word (not just a prefix) was discussed in Teknisk Tidskrift, 15 December 1934, referring to a proposal from "Fera", Föreningen för elektricitetens rationella användning, an association of electric power grid operators.
Man framhåller nämligen med bestämdhet, att "el" ej får betraktas som förkortning utan som en beteckning för allt som har med elektricitet att göra, avsedd att brukas enbart eller i sammansättningar som prefix eller suffix och aldrig tillsammans med punkt och bindestreck. Språkligt sett, kan väl ordet närmast betraktas som en ellips
Teknisk Tidskrift, 15 December 1934
Translation:
Indeed, it is firmly emphasized that "el" must not be regarded as an abbreviation but as a designation for everything related to electricity, intended for use solely or in combinations as a prefix or suffix, and never together with a period and hyphen. Linguistically, the word can be considered akin to an ellipsis.
Teknisk Tidskrift, 15 December 1934
el c
- electricity, electric current or power; clipping of elektricitet or elektrisk
- 1957, used as a prefix, §14, Lag (1957:262) om allmän energiskatt
elektrisk kraft som förbrukas för el-, gas-, värme- eller vattenförsörjning i andra kommuner
electric power which is used for the supply of electricity, gas, heating or water in other municipalities - 1975, Håkan Winberg (m), speaking in the Riksdag on May 27 (protocol, page 264)
Vidare är den del av marknaden som har den högsta betalningsförmågan, dvs. hushållen, inriktad på användning av el.
Also the part of the market which has the highest purchasing power, i.e. the households, is set for the use of electricity. - 1980, Rune Torwald (c), speaking in the Riksdag on January 11 (protocol, page 46)
När man använder så stor andel av elen till att värma upp bostäder som ju bara utnyttjas vintertid och inte på sommaren, så får man stora säsongvariationer.
When using so large a portion of the electricity to heat homes, something which is only used in the winter and not in the summer, one will get large seasonal variations.
- 1957, used as a prefix, §14, Lag (1957:262) om allmän energiskatt
- (school slang) short for el- och energiprogrammet
Jag går el.
I study at the electrical engineering programme
(literally, “I go electrical.”)
“el”, in Svensk ordbok [Dictionary of Swedish] (in Swedish)
“el”, in Svenska Akademiens ordlista [Wordlist of the Swedish Academy] (in Swedish)
From English el, the English name of the letter L / l.
- (Standard Tagalog) IPA(key): /ʔel/ [ʔɛl]
- Rhymes: -el
- Syllabification: el
el (Baybayin spelling ᜁᜎ᜔)
- the name of the Latin script letter L/l, in the Filipino alphabet
Synonyms: (in the Abakada alphabet) la, (in the Abecedario) ele
- (Latin-script letter names) titik; ey, bi, si, di, i, ef, dyi, eyts, ay, dyey, key, el, em, en, enye, en dyi, o, pi, kyu, ar, es, ti, yu, vi, dobolyu, eks, way, zi
- “el”, in Pambansang Diksiyonaryo | Diksiyonaryo.ph, 2018
- IPA(key): [(ʔ)el]
el
- alternative form of eli (“to remember”)
- Rika Hayami-Allen (2001), A descriptive study of the language of Ternate, the northern Moluccas, Indonesia, University of Pittsburgh
bir el
From Ottoman Turkish ال (el), from Old Anatolian Turkish ال (el), from Proto-Turkic *elig (“hand”), may be related to Proto-Turkic *al- (“to take”). Cognate with Old Turkic 𐰠𐰏 (elig), Uzbek ilik, Turkmen el, Gagauz el, Salar el, Southern Altai элӱ (elü, “wide finger”), Chuvash алӑ (ală), etc.
el (definite accusative eli, plural eller)
- hand
- 2004, “Dursun Zaman”, in maNga, performed by maNga and Göksel:
Her sabah doğan güneş / Bir sabah doğmaz oldu / Elleri ellerimden / Kayıp giden yıldız oldu / Gülünce ışık saçan / O gözler yaşla doldu / Ağlama duymaz artık / Bir varmış, bir yok oldu / Giderken bıraktığı / Bütün renkler siyah oldu / Üzülme anla artık / Belki de huzur buldu
The sun that rises every morning / One day did not rise / Her hands slipped out of my hands / And turned into a shining star / She smiled and while spreading her light / Those eyes were filled with tears / Don’t cry, she won’t hear anymore / Once upon a time she lived / As she went away, all the colors / She left behind turned black / Don't be sad, understand / Maybe she found peace
- 2004, “Dursun Zaman”, in maNga, performed by maNga and Göksel:
- possession
elindeki her şeyi satmış ― he sold everything in his possession - round (stage of a sports competition)
Her el sona kalan adam sensin.
In every round you're the last man standing. - round (individual ammunition shell)
İki el sıktı, ikisini de ıskaladı, sonra da bıçaklamaya çalıştı.
He fired two rounds, whiffed both, and then he tried to knife him. - handle
- (Samsun) because, cause
onun elinden bir sürü şey çekti ― she suffered a lot because of him
- el arabası
- el atmak
- el birliği
- el bombası
- el el ile, değirmen yel ile
- el ele
- el ele vermek
- el eli yıkar, iki el yüzü
- el etek öpmek
- el geçirmek
- el işi
- el kaldırmak
- el kitabı
- el koymak
- el öpmek
- el pençe divan
- el sıkmak
- el şakası
- el uzatmak
- el vermek
- el yordamı
- elde etmek
- elden çıkarmak
- elden düşmek
- eldiven
- ele gelmek
- elense
- eli açık
- eli alışmak
- eli armut toplamak
- eli ayağı titremek
- eli boş çıkmak
- eli boş gelmek
- eli ekmek tutmak
- eli silah tutmak
- elinde patlamak
- elinden gelme
- eliyle koymuş gibi
- ellemek
- elöpen
- elverişli
- elvermek
Inherited from Ottoman Turkish ایل (el), from Old Anatolian Turkish ایل (ẹl), from Proto-Turkic *ēl (“realm”). Doublet of il. Cognate with Old Turkic [script needed] (él), Kazakh ел (el), Azerbaijani el, etc.
el (definite accusative eli, plural eller)
- country, homeland, province
Synonyms: yurt, memleket - tribe
- a foreign person
- (collective) other people; foreigners, strangers
- land, territory, region
- (Uşak) city
- (Mersin) residents of a certain place
“el”, in Turkish dictionaries, Türk Dil Kurumu
Nişanyan, Sevan (2002–), “el”, in Nişanyan Sözlük
Ayverdi, İlhan (2010), “el”, in Misalli Büyük Türkçe Sözlük, a reviewed and expanded single-volume edition, Istanbul: Kubbealtı Neşriyatı
Tietze, Andreas (2009), “el”, in Tarihi ve Etimolojik Türkiye Türkçesi Lügati [Historical and Etymological Dictionary of Turkish] (in Turkish), volume II, Vienna: Österreichische Akademie der Wissenschaften, page 578
Çağbayır, Yaşar (2007), “il1”, in Ötüken Türkçe Sözlük (in Turkish), volume 1, Istanbul: Ötüken Neşriyat, page 2132
“el”, in Türkiye'de halk ağzından derleme sözlüğü [Compilation Dictionary of Popular Speech in Turkey] (in Turkish), Ankara: Türk Dil Kurumu, 1963–1982
el m sg (plural i)
el
- he, she, it (used as an obligatory clitic pronoun following a verb)
El can el magna i òsi. ― The dog (it) eats the bones.
el
- the (used for all proper nouns and also foreign loanwords not yet assimilated into Volapük)
El Karl binom ziom ela Katlin. ― Karl is Katlin's uncle.
- The article el is used to modify any kind of noun (proper or foreign) which is itself indeclinable in Volapük. Then, whenever that noun needs to be declined, the article el which modifies it is declined in its stead.
- hiel
- jiel
- IPA(key): /ɛl/
el f (plural eliau)
- The name of the Latin script letter L/l.
- (Latin-script letter names) llythyren; a, bi, ec, èch, di, èdd, e, èf, èff, èg, eng, aetsh, i / i dot, je, ce, el, èll, em, en, o, pi, ffi, ciw, er, rhi, ès, ti, èth, u / u bedol / u gwpan, fi, w, ecs, y, sèd
- ell
el m