ISO abbreviation language code for Greek language (ISO 639-1 language code EL).
Pronunciation
IPA(key): /ɛl/
Etymology 1
From Middle English, from Old Englishel, from Latinel(the name of the letter L).
Alternative forms
L
ell
Noun
el (pluralels)
The name of the Latin-script letter L.
Translations
See also
(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
Etymology 2
Alternative forms
L
Noun
el (pluralels)
(US) An elevated railway, especially for specific systems such as the metro in Chicago.
Translations
Etymology 3
Shortening of eleven.
Numeral
el
The cardinal number occurring after dek and before do in a duodecimal system. Written ↋, decimal value 11.
Etymology 4
From Spanishel.
Article
el
(informal, humorous, chiefly Internet slang) the
Anagrams
-le, LE, Le, LαE, le
Aragonese
Etymology
From Latinille(“that one”).
Pronoun
el
him (direct object)
Synonyms
lo
Aromanian
Alternative forms
elu
Etymology
From Latinille, possibly through a Vulgar Latin*illus. Compare Romanianel.
Pronoun
elm (pluralelj)
(third-person masculine singular pronoun, nominative form) he
nãsh, elj (third-person (masculine or mixed) plural)
Asturian
Etymology
From Latinille, illum.
Pronunciation
Article
elm sg (femininela, neuterlo, masculine plurallos, feminine pluralles)
(definite) the
Usage notes
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.
Derived terms
Azerbaijani
Etymology
From Proto-Turkic*ēl.
Pronunciation
IPA(key): /el/
Noun
el (definite accusativeeli, pluralellər)
(somewhat poetic) people
(somewhat poetic) country, land
(somewhat poetic) tract, region, district, province
Declension
Breton
Etymology
(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)
Pronunciation
Contraction
el
e (preposition “in”) + ul (indefinite article “a(n)”)
e (preposition “in”) + al (definite article “the”)
Catalan
Alternative forms
es(salat) in Balearic dialects.
lo(colloquial) in North occidental dialects.
Etymology
From earlier lo, from Latinillum, from Latinille. The initial e- was inserted as an epenthetic vowel after the unstressed -o had begun to be dropped.
Pronunciation
(Balearic, Central) IPA(key): /əl/
(Valencian) IPA(key): /el/
Article
elm (femininela, masculine pluralels, feminine pluralles)
the; definite article
neuter definite article used to make abstract nouns from adjectives; the; what, that which
Usage notes
Before a word that begins with a vowel or silent h- followed by a vowel, the form l' is used.
See also
en, masculine singular definite article for given names.
Pronoun
el (proclitic, contractedl', encliticlo, contracted enclitic'l)
him (direct object)
Declension
Further reading
“el” in Diccionari de la llengua catalana, segona edició, Institut d’Estudis Catalans.
“el” in Gran Diccionari de la Llengua Catalana, Grup Enciclopèdia Catalana.
“el” in Diccionari normatiu valencià, Acadèmia Valenciana de la Llengua.
“el” in Diccionari català-valencià-balear, Antoni Maria Alcover and Francesc de Borja Moll, 1962.
Cornish
Noun
elm (pluraleledh)
angel
Crimean Tatar
Etymology
(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)
Pronunciation
Noun
el
hand, forearm
ell
Declension
References
Mirjejev, V. A.; Usejinov, S. M. (2002) Ukrajinsʹko-krymsʹkotatarsʹkyj slovnyk [Ukrainian – Crimean Tatar Dictionary][1], Simferopol: Dolya, →ISBN
Czech
Pronunciation
IPA(key): [ˈɛl]
Noun
eln
The name of the Latin-script letter L.
Further reading
el in Příruční slovník jazyka českého, 1935–1957
el in Slovník spisovného jazyka českého, 1960–1971, 1989
Dalmatian
Alternative forms
lo
Etymology
From Latinille, illud.
Article
el
the; masculine singular definite article
Related terms
i
la
Danish
Etymology 1
From Old Norseelri(“alder”), cf. ǫlr (compare Icelandicelri, Swedishal, Norwegian Bokmålolder), from Proto-Germanic*aluz, *alusō (compare Englishalder), variant of *alizō, *alisō (compare Dutchels, GermanErle), from Proto-Indo-European*h₂élisos.
Introduced in the 1940’s after Swedishel, abbreviation of elektricitet(“electricity”).
Pronunciation
IPA(key): /ɛl/, [ɛl]
Noun
elc (singular definiteellen, not used in plural form)
electricity
Synonyms
strøm
Dutch
Etymology
From Middle Dutchelne, elle. This etymology is incomplete. You can help Wiktionary by elaborating on the origins of this term.
Pronunciation
IPA(key): /ɛl/
Hyphenation: el
Rhymes: -ɛl
Noun
elf or m (pluralellen, diminutiveelletjen)
(archaic) A unit of measurement corresponding to about 69 cm.
Derived terms
ellenlang
Emilian
Pronunciation
IPA(key): /el/
Hyphenation: el
Pronoun
el (personal)
(nominative case, feminine) they
(accusative case, feminine) them
Alternative forms
Becomes elj- before a vowel.
Becomes -li when acting as an enclitic.
Related terms
Esperanto
Etymology
Obscure; may be derived from Latinex ("out of").
Pronunciation
IPA(key): /el/
Preposition
el
made of
from (of)
Antonyms
al(“to”)
Derived terms
Galician
Etymology
From Latinille(“that”).
Pronunciation
IPA(key): /ˈel/
Pronoun
elm (accusativeo, dativelle)
he
Usage notes
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(“I gave you it”) contracts to Dou cho.
Related terms
ela
elas
eles
Guinea-Bissau Creole
Etymology
From Portugueseele. Cognate with Kabuverdianuel.
Pronoun
el
he, she (third person singular).
Hungarian
Etymology
(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)
Pronunciation
IPA(key): [ˈɛl]
Rhymes: -ɛl
Adverb
el
off
away
Derived terms
elvégre
See also
el-
ell
Icelandic
Pronunciation
IPA(key): /ɛːl/
Rhymes: -ɛːl
Verb
el
first-person singular present indicative of ala
Ido
Pronunciation
IPA(key): /el/, /ɛl/
Pronoun
el (pluraleli, possessiveelua, possessive pluralelui)
Apocopic form of elu; she, her
See also
Istriot
Etymology 1
From Latinillum < ille.
Pronoun
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.
Related terms
gila
Etymology 2
From Latinille.
Article
elm sg (femininela)
the
Italian
Pronunciation
IPA(key): /el/, [el̺]
Hyphenation: él
Determiner
elm
(before a consonant)Apocopic form of ello
Kabuverdianu
Etymology
From Portugueseele.
Pronoun
el
he, she (third person singular).
Kabyle
Verb
el (verbal nounayla)
(obsolete) to have, own, possess
Synonyms:sɛu, ɣur
(obsolete) to belong to
Usage notes
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.
Ladino
Pronunciation
IPA(key): /el/
Article
el (Hebrew spellingאיל, plurallos, femininela)
the (masculine singular)
Pronoun
el (Latin spelling, Hebrew spellingאיל)
he, it
Latin
Pronunciation
(Classical) IPA(key): /el/, [ɛɫ̪]
(Ecclesiastical) IPA(key): /el/, [ɛl]
Noun
elf (indeclinable)
The name of the letter L.
Usage notes
Multiple Latin names for the letter L, l have been suggested. The most common is el or a syllabicl, 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).
Coordinate terms
(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
References
el in Gaffiot, Félix (1934) Dictionnaire illustré Latin-Français, Hachette
Carl Meissner; Henry William Auden (1894) Latin Phrase-Book[2], London: Macmillan and Co.
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
Latvian
Pronunciation
IPA(key): [ɛl]
Noun
elm (invariable)
The Latvian name of the Latin script letter L/l.
See also
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)
Leonese
Etymology
From Latinille.
Article
elm sg (femininela, neuterlu, masculine plurallos, feminine pluralles)
the (definite article)
Usage notes
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:
The article 'el contracts to 'l after a word that ends in a vowel, if the following word begins with a consonant.
Middle Dutch
Etymology
From Old Dutch*elli, from Proto-West Germanic*alljas.
Pronunciation
IPA(key): /el/
Determiner
el
other, another
Adverb
el
else, otherwise
elsewhere
Further reading
“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
Middle English
Noun
el
Alternative form of ele
Middle Welsh
Pronunciation
IPA(key): /eːl/
Verb
el
third-person singular present subjunctive of mynet
Mirandese
Pronoun
el
he
Norwegian Bokmål
Etymology
Borrowed from Swedishel.
Noun
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.
Derived terms
elbil
elmotor
References
“el” in The Bokmål Dictionary.
Norwegian Nynorsk
Etymology 1
Borrowed from Swedishel.
Noun
eln
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.
This term needs a translation to English. Please help out and add a translation, then remove the text {{rfdef}}.
Etymology 3
Verb
el
present tense of ala
present tense of elja
References
“el” in The Nynorsk Dictionary.
Occitan
Etymology
From Old Occitan [Term?], from Latinille.
Pronoun
el
he (third-person singular subject pronoun)
it (third-person singular subject pronoun)
Old English
Pronunciation
IPA(key): /el/
Noun
elm
el, the letter L
Old French
Etymology 1
Alternative forms
enl(very rare)
Contraction
el
contraction of en + le (in the)
Etymology 2
Latinalius.
Pronoun
el
something else
Old Norse
Verb
el
first-person singular active present indicative of ala
Old Portuguese
Pronoun
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.
Portuguese
Etymology
Akin to Spanishel.
Article
elm sg
Only used in el-rei: the
Romanian
Etymology
From Vulgar Latin*illus, from Latinille.
Pronunciation
IPA(key): /jel/
Pronoun
elm (third-person singular, pluralei, feminine equivalentea)
(nominative form) he
Declension
Synonyms
dumnealui(polite form)
Pronoun
elm (stressed accusative form ofel)
(direct object, preceded by preposition, such as "pe", "cu", "la", or "pentru") him
Related terms
ea (third-person feminine singular)
ei (third-person masculine plural)
ele (third-person feminine plural)
See also
Romansch
Etymology
From Latinille.
Pronoun
el
he
Spanish
Pronunciation
IPA(key): /el/
Etymology 1
From Latinille.
Article
el (plurallos, femininela, feminine plurallas, neuterlo)
Masculine singular definite article; the.
Usage notes
The prepositions de and a contract with el, unless el is part of a proper noun.
Spanish definite articles are used in some contexts where English uses possessive pronouns.
Derived terms
el que
el que sea
Related terms
él
le
lo
Etymology 2
From Old Spanishela, from Latinilla.
Article
el (feminine plurallas)
Feminine singular definite article used before nouns which start with a stressed /a/:
Further reading
“el” in Diccionario de la lengua española, Vigésima tercera edición, Real Academia Española, 2014.
Anagrams
le
Swedish
Etymology
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
Pronunciation
IPA(key): /eːl/
Noun
elc
electricity, electric current or power; Contraction 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.
Declension
Related terms
elanvändning
elavbrott
elkabel
elkraft
elmätare
elnät
elöverföring
elöverkänslig
elsäkerhet
elstängsel
elström
elverk
Anagrams
le
Turkish
Pronunciation
IPA(key): /el/, /əl/
Etymology 1
From Old Turkicélig (“hand”), from Proto-Turkic*alı-, *ạl-(“to take”) or *el;-ig ("hand"). Cognates with Uzbek ilik, Turkmen el, Gagauz el and Sary-Yughur ɨlɨɣ.
Noun
el (definite accusativeeli, pluraleller)
hand
Etymology 2
Noun
el (definite accusativeeli, pluraleller)
a foreign person
Etymology 3
From Old Turkicél, from Proto-Turkic*ēl.
Noun
el (definite accusativeeli, pluraleller)
country, homeland, province
Declension
Venetian
Alternative forms
al(Belluno)
Etymology
From Latinillum < ille.
Article
elm sg (plurali)
the
Related terms
ła
Pronoun
el
he, she, it used as an obligatory clitic pronoun following a verb.
Volapük
Article
el
the (used for all proper nouns and also foreign loanwords not yet assimilated into Volapük)
Usage notes
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.
Declension
Derived terms
hiel
jiel
Welsh
Pronunciation
IPA(key): /ɛl/
Noun
elf (pluraleliau)
The name of the Latin-script letter L.
Mutation
See also
(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, fi, w, ecs, y, sèd(Category: cy:Latin letter names)
Westrobothnian
Etymology 1
From Old Norseeldr.
Pronunciation
IPA(key): /éːl/, /íːl/
Rhymes: -éːl, -ɪ́ːl
Noun
elm (definite singulareln)
fire
Alternative forms
il
Derived terms
Etymology 2
From Old Norseertla
Pronunciation
IPA(key): /èːl/, /èlː/
Rhymes: -èːl, -èlː
Noun
elf (definite singularela)
a bird of the family Motacillidae
Derived terms
sesel
trȯhnuel
References
Larsson, Evert, Söderström, Sven, “eld s. e:l” and “ärla s. ê:l”, in Hössjömålet : ordbok över en sydvästerbottnisk dialekt [The Hössjö speech: dictionary of a southern Westrobothnian dialect] (in Swedish) →ISBN, page 95 and 221