From Latinlabii, from the first word of the sixth line of Ut queant laxis, the medieval hymn on which solfège was based because its lines started on each note of the scale successively.
Alternative forms
lah
Noun
la (plurallas)
(music) A syllable used in solfège to represent the sixth note of a major scale.
And now Mrs Waters (for we must confess she was in the same bed), being, I suppose, awakened from her sleep, and seeing two men fighting in her bedchamber, began to scream in the most violent manner, crying out murder! robbery! and more frequently rape! which last, some, perhaps, may wonder she should mention, who do not consider that these words of exclamation are used by ladies in a fright, as fa, la, la, ra, da, &c., are in music, only as the vehicles of sound, and without any fixed ideas.
Translations
Coordinate terms
(music):do, re, mi, fa, sol, ti
Etymology 2
Sound used to form meaningless song refrains. Of imitative origin. Compare Old Englishlā(a common exclamation), Ancient Greekλαλαγε(lalage, “babble”), Germanlallen(“to babble”).
Interjection
la
Represents the sound of music or singing.
"La la la la, I can't hear you!" Jimmy said, sticking his fingers in his ears.
I couldn't make out the words of the song, it was just a bunch of la la la as far as I could hear.
Etymology 3
From Middle Englishla, from Old Englishlā. More at lo.
Alternative forms
law
Interjection
la
(obsolete)Used to introduce a statement with emphatic or intensive effect.
(archaic)Expressing surprise, anger. etc.
La, ma'am, what doth your la'ship think? the girl that your la'ship saw at church on Sunday, whom you thought so handsome; though you would not have thought her so handsome neither, if you had seen her nearer, but to be sure she hath been carried before the justice for being big with child.
1811, Jane Austen, Sense and Sensibility, vol. III ch. 2:
“Oh, la! here come the Richardsons. I had a vast deal more to say to you, but I must not stay away from them any longer.”
Etymology 4
From Frenchla, Italianla.
Adjective
la (not comparable)
Prefixed to the name of a woman, with ironic effect (as though an opera prima donna).
2007, Kate Carter, The Guardian, 22 Nov 2007:
Following lukewarm on the heels of an article a few weeks ago, where (I paraphrase due to having filed the relevant copy in the recycling bin) Victoria Beckham made a "well-meaning" remark that the other Spice Girls might want to lose a few pounds, we now have a new incidence of La Beckham's scintillating and entirely well-meaning humour.
2010, Christopher Hitchens, Hitch-22, Atlantic 2011, page 232:
By judicious leaking, he also managed to make la Kirkpatrick and her associates look rather unsavory.
Etymology 5
Possibly a shortened form of lad.
Noun
la (plurallas)
(Liverpudlian) lad, lid
Anagrams
& al., -al, AL, Al, a.l., al, al-
Afrikaans
Pronunciation
IPA(key): [lɑː]
Noun
la (plural [please provide])
(music) la (solfège)
References
2007. The UCLA Phonetics Lab Archive. Los Angeles, CA: UCLA Department of Linguistics.
Ama
Pronunciation
IPA(key): /ɭa/
Noun
la
fish
Anguthimri
Noun
la
(Mpakwithi) black snake
References
Terry Crowley, The Mpakwithi dialect of Anguthimri (1981), page 186
Aragonese
Etymology
From Latinilla(“that one”).
Pronoun
la
her (direct object)
Aromanian
Etymology
From Latinillac. Compare Romanianla.
Preposition
la
at
by
Asturian
Etymology
From Latinilla(m).
Article
laf sg (masculineel, neuterlo, masculine plurallos, feminine pluralles)
(definite) the
Usage notes
The article la contracts to l' before a word beginning with a or ha: l'asturiana (the Asturian), l'habitación (the habitation)
Pronoun
la
her (third-person singular feminine direct pronoun)
Catalan
Pronunciation
(Balearic, Central) IPA(key): /lə/
(Valencian) IPA(key): /la/
Etymology 1
From Old Occitanla, from Latinilla(m).
Article
laf (masculineel, masculine pluralels, feminine pluralles)
the; feminine singular definite article
Usage notes
The article la is contracted to l' before a vowel or h-, except before a following unstressed (h)i- or (h)u-.
Pronoun
la (enclitic and proclitic, contracted procliticl')
her (direct object)
Declension
Usage notes
-la is the full (plena) form of the pronoun. It is normally used after verbs.
Etymology 2
Noun
lam (plurallas)
(music) la (sixth note of a diatonic scale)
Further reading
“la” in Diccionari de la llengua catalana, segona edició, Institut d’Estudis Catalans.
Chickasaw
Pronoun
la
I (first-person singular pronoun)
Corsican
Etymology
From Latinilla, feminine form of ille(“that”), from Old Latinolle. Cognates include Italianla and Frenchla.
Pronunciation
IPA(key): /ˈla/
Homophone: là
Article
la
Archaic form of a.
Pronoun
la
Archaic form of a.
References
https://infcor.adecec.net/
Dalmatian
Etymology
From Latinilla(m).
Article
la
the; feminine singular definite article
Related terms
el
i
le
Dutch
Pronunciation
IPA(key): /laː/
Hyphenation: la
Rhymes: -aː
Etymology 1
From earlier lade, from Middle Dutchlāde, from Old Dutch*latha, from Proto-Germanic*hlaþō.
Noun
laf (pluralladenorla's, diminutivelaatjen)
drawer
Alternative forms
lade
Derived terms
bestekla
bureaula
schuifla
Descendants
Afrikaans: laai
Etymology 2
(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)
Noun
laf (pluralla's, diminutivelaatjen)
la (music)
Anagrams
al
Emilian
Etymology
From Latinilla(m), feminine form of ille.
Pronunciation
IPA(key): /la/
Hyphenation: la
Article
laf sg (pluralal, el, li)
the
Pronoun
la (personal)
(nominative case) she
(accusative case) her
Alternative forms
Becomes l’ before a vowel.
Becomes -la when acting as an enclitic.
Related terms
Esperanto
Etymology
Borrowed from Frenchla, Italianla, Spanishla.
Pronunciation
IPA(key): /la/
Hyphenation: la
Article
la
the
la libro — the book
la libroj — the books
la angla lingvo — the English language
la angla — (the) English (language)(clipped form)
Alternative forms
l' (poetic)
Finnish
Etymology
From lauantai.
Noun
la
Abbreviation of lauantai(“Saturday”).
French
Pronunciation
IPA(key): /la/
Homophones: là, las
Etymology 1
From Middle Frenchla, from Old Frenchla, from Latinillam, which is the accusative singular feminine of ille.
Article
laf sg
the (definite article).
Usage notes
la becomes l’ before a vowel or an unaspirated h.
Derived terms
à la
Descendants
→ Norwegian Bokmål: la
Pronoun
la?
her, it (direct object).
Related terms
Etymology 2
Noun
lam (pluralla)
(music) la, the note 'A'.
Derived terms
donner le la
See also
là
References
Further reading
“la” in Trésor de la langue française informatisé (The Digitized Treasury of the French Language).
Friulian
Etymology
From Latinilla(m).
Article
laf sg (plurallis)
the
See also
lis, il
Galician
Etymology 1
Pronoun
laf (accusative)
Alternative form of a(“her”)
Usage notes
The l- forms of accusative third-person pronouns are used when the preceding word ends in -r or -s, and is suffixed to the preceding word
This article is used only after a word that ends with an oral (non-nasal) vowel and an oral consonant, in that order, and when it modifies a singular noun.
See also
a
an
lan
nan
yo
yon
Etymology 3
Adverb
From Frenchlà(“there”)
la
there
Hungarian
Pronunciation
IPA(key): [ˈlɒ]
Rhymes: -lɒ
Interjection
la
(archaic)used in dialects at the end of an exclamatory sentence as an emphasis
a syllable used when singing a tune without lyrics
Further reading
(for emphasis): la in Bárczi, Géza and László Országh. A magyar nyelv értelmező szótára (’The Explanatory Dictionary of the Hungarian Language’). Budapest: Akadémiai Kiadó, 1959–1962. Fifth ed., 1992: →ISBN
(syllable used when singing): la in Bárczi, Géza and László Országh. A magyar nyelv értelmező szótára (’The Explanatory Dictionary of the Hungarian Language’). Budapest: Akadémiai Kiadó, 1959–1962. Fifth ed., 1992: →ISBN
(alternative form of lá, used in solfège): la in Bárczi, Géza and László Országh. A magyar nyelv értelmező szótára (’The Explanatory Dictionary of the Hungarian Language’). Budapest: Akadémiai Kiadó, 1959–1962. Fifth ed., 1992: →ISBN
(used in à la, cf. à): la in Bárczi, Géza and László Országh. A magyar nyelv értelmező szótára (’The Explanatory Dictionary of the Hungarian Language’). Budapest: Akadémiai Kiadó, 1959–1962. Fifth ed., 1992: →ISBN
Ido
Alternative forms
(apocopic form)l'
Pronunciation
IPA(key): /la/
Etymology 1
Borrowed from Esperantola, from Frenchla, Italianla, Spanishla.
Article
la (pluralle)
the
Derived terms
Etymology 2
Borrowed from Englishla, Frenchla, Italianla, Spanishla, Portugueselá, GermanA, Russianля(lja).
Noun
la (pluralle la or lai)
(music) la
Interlingua
Pronoun
la
(accusative) her
(dative) to her
Istriot
Etymology
From Latinilla(m), feminine of ille.
Article
laf sg (masculineel)
feminine singular definite article the
1877, Antonio Ive, Canti popolari istriani: raccolti a Rovigno, volume 5, Ermanno Loescher, page 29:
Ti son la manduleîna inzucherada.
You are the sugared almond.
Italian
Etymology 1
From Latinilla(m), feminine form of ille.
Pronunciation
IPA(key): °/la/°
Rhymes: -a
Article
laf sg (pluralle)
the
Usage notes
The article la elides with words that begin with a vowel, becoming l'.
Pronoun
laf sg (pluralle, masculinelo)
(accusative) her, it
a.1975, Pier Paolo Pasolini:
(accusative, formal) you (term of respect)
Alternative forms
-la (enclitic)
See also
Etymology 2
Pronunciation
IPA(key): /ˈla/°
Rhymes: -a
Noun
lam (invariable)
(music) la (musical note)
(music) A (musical note and scale)
Derived terms
la maggiore
la minore
References
la in Luciano Canepari, Dizionario di Pronuncia Italiana (DiPI)
Further reading
La (nota) on the Italian Wikipedia.Wikipedia it
Anagrams
al
Japanese
Romanization
la
Rōmaji transcription of ら゚
Rōmaji transcription of ラ゚
Jingpho
Etymology
Borrowed from Burmeseလ(la.)
Noun
la
month
References
Kurabe, Keita (2016-12-31) , “Phonology of Burmese loanwords in Jinghpaw”, in Kyoto University Linguistic Research[2], volume 35, DOI:10.14989/219015, ISSN 1349-7804, pages 91–128
Kabuverdianu
Etymology
From Portugueselá.
Adverb
la
there
Kambera
Preposition
la
in
References
Marian Klamer (1998) A Grammar of Kambera, Berlin, New York: Mouton de Gruyter, →ISBN, page 127
Kilivila
Verb
-la-
to leave, to go
kula - thou goest
kulosi - ye go
bala - I will go
Idioms
kusisu, bala
See also
-wa-
References
Ladin
Etymology
From Latinilla(m).
Article
laf (singular)
the
Usage notes
The article la elides with words that begin with a vowel, becoming l'.
See also
l
l'
i
les
Ladino
Article
la (Hebrew spellingלה, plurallas, masculineel)
the (feminine singular)
Leonese
Etymology
From Latinilla(m), feminine singular of ille.
Article
laf sg (masculineel, neuterlu, masculine plurallos, feminine pluralles)
the (definite article)
Usage notes
The prepositions cun, en and pur contract with la, unless la is part of a proper noun.
cun + la → cula
en + la → na
pur + la → pula
The article la becomes l' before a word beginning with a a or ha:
Malay
Particle
la
Misspelling of lah.
Adverb
la (Jawi spellingلا)
now (at the present time or moment)
Further reading
“la” in Pusat Rujukan Persuratan Melayu | Malay Literary Reference Centre, Kuala Lumpur: Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka, 2017.
Maltese
Etymology
From Arabicلَا (lā). Doublet of le(“no”).
Pronunciation
IPA(key): /laː/
Usually unstressed and then automatically shortened to /la/.
Adverb
la
Used—optionally—with a negated second-person imperfect verb to express the negated imperative.
Mandarin
Pronunciation
Romanization
la (Zhuyin˙ㄌㄚ)
Pinyin transcription of 啦
Pinyin transcription of 嚹
Pinyin transcription of 鞡
Pinyin transcription of 𤷟
Pinyin transcription of 𩋷
la
Nonstandard spelling of lā.
Nonstandard spelling of lá.
Nonstandard spelling of lǎ.
Nonstandard spelling of là.
Usage notes
English transcriptions of Mandarin speech often fail to distinguish between the critical tonal differences employed in the Mandarin language, using words such as this one without the appropriate indication of tone.
Matal
Preposition
la
in
from
References
Michif
Etymology
From Frenchla.
Pronunciation
IPA(key): [la]
Article
laf (masculineli, masculine and feminine plurallii)
the
Middle French
Etymology 1
From Old Frenchla, from Latinillam.
Article
laf (masculinele, masculine and feminine pluralles)
the
Descendants
French: la
→ Norwegian Bokmål: la
Etymology 2
From Old Frenchla.
Alternative forms
là(circa 1550)
Adverb
la
there
Descendants
French: là
Mirandese
Etymology
From Latinilla(m).
Article
laf (plurallas, masculinel, masculine pluralls)
the
Neapolitan
Pronoun
la
Alternative form of 'a
Norman
Etymology
From Old Frenchla, from Latinilla(m).
Pronunciation
Article
laf (pluralles)
(Jersey) the (feminine singular definite article)
Coordinate terms
(gender)lé
Norwegian Bokmål
Etymology 1
From the verb late
Verb
la (imperativela, present tenselar, simple pastlot, past participlelatt)
to let
to leave (in a given state)
Etymology 2
From Old Norsehlaða
Verb
la (imperativela, present tenselar, simple pastladde, past participleladd)
alternative form of lade
Etymology 3
Verb
la
simple past of legge
Etymology 3
From Frenchla(“the”), from Middle Frenchla(“the”), from Old Frenchla(“the”), from Latinillam(“that, those”), which is the accusative singular feminine of ille(“that, those”), from Old Latinolle(“he, that”), from Proto-Indo-European*h₂ol-no- or *h₂l̥-no-, from *h₂el-(“beyond, other”).
Pronunciation
IPA(key): /la/
Rhymes: -a
Hyphenation: la
Article
la
(Used in certain expressions of French origin) the
à la, à la carte, à la grecque, à la mode, à la maison, à la suite
References
“la” in The Bokmål Dictionary.
Norwegian Nynorsk
Pronunciation
IPA(key): /lɑː/
Etymology 1
From Old Norseláta, from Proto-Germanic*lētaną. Akin to Englishlet.
Alternative forms
lata, late (long forms)
Verb
la (present tenselarorlèt, past tenselét, supinelattorlate, past participlelattorlaten, present participlelatande, imperativela)
let, allow
Derived terms
la vera
la bli
la seg gjera
Etymology 2
From Old Norsehlaða, a strong verb from Proto-Germanic*hlaþaną.
Alternative forms
lada, lade (long forms)
Verb
la (present tenselar, past tenseladde, supineladdorladt, past participleladd, present participleladande, imperativela)
(transitive, intransitive) to load, charge
Synonym:laste
Derived terms
ladingf
ladekabelm
Related terms
løef
lassn
ladem
Etymology 3
From Latinlabii, from the first word of the sixth line of Ut queant laxis, the medieval hymn on which solfège was based because its lines started on each note of the scale successively. Through Italian.
(music)la, a syllable used in solfège to represent the second note of a major scale.
Coordinate terms
(scale of solfège):do, re, mi, fa, sol, la, ti, do
Etymology 4
See the etymology of the main entry.
Verb
la
past tense ofleggja, leggje, leggaandlegge
References
“la” in The Nynorsk Dictionary.
Anagrams
al
Occitan
Etymology
From Old Occitanla, from Latinilla(m).
Article
la (masculinelo, feminine plurallas, masculine plurallos)
the; feminine singular definite article
Old English
Pronunciation
IPA(key): /lɑː/
Interjection
lā
Lo! Oh! Ah!
Enclitic particle used to emphasise interrogation, exclamation, entreaty, affirmation, negation
Old French
Etymology
From Latinilla(m).
Article
la
the (feminine singular oblique definite article)
the (feminine singular nominative definite article)
circa 1170, Chrétien de Troyes, Érec et Énide:
Trop avons fet grant reposee, Recomançomes la meslee!
We have rested too much
Let's restart the battle! (literally, the mix)
Inflection
Pronoun
la
it (feminine singular object pronoun)
Descendants
Middle French: la
French: la
→ Norwegian Bokmål: la
Old Irish
Alternative forms
le
Etymology
From a form of Proto-Celtic*letos(“side”), from which leth, which could be related to *ɸletos(“side”). However, compare Latinlatus.
Pronunciation
IPA(key): /la/
Preposition
la (with the accusative)
with
c.800, Würzburg Glosses on the Pauline Epistles, published in Thesaurus Palaeohibernicus (reprinted 1987, Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies), edited and with translations by Whitley Stokes and John Strachan, vol. I, pp. 499–712, Wb. 14d17
belonging to
c.800, Würzburg Glosses on the Pauline Epistles, published in Thesaurus Palaeohibernicus (reprinted 1987, Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies), edited and with translations by Whitley Stokes and John Strachan, vol. I, pp. 499–712, Wb. 6b22
c.800, Würzburg Glosses on the Pauline Epistles, published in Thesaurus Palaeohibernicus (reprinted 1987, Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies), edited and with translations by Whitley Stokes and John Strachan, vol. I, pp. 499–712, Wb. 7d10
among
c.800, Würzburg Glosses on the Pauline Epistles, published in Thesaurus Palaeohibernicus (reprinted 1987, Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies), edited and with translations by Whitley Stokes and John Strachan, vol. I, pp. 499–712, Wb. 9c12
in the language of
c.845, St. Gall Glosses on Priscian, published in Thesaurus Palaeohibernicus (reprinted 1975, Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies), edited and with translations by Whitley Stokes and John Strachan, vol. II, pp. 49–224, Sg. 207b11
Inflection
Derived terms
Combinations with a definite article:
lassin(masculine and feminine singular)
lassa(neuter singular)
lasna(plural)
Combinations with a possessive determiner:
lam(“with my”)
lat(“with your sg”)
lia(“with his/her/its/their”)
liar(“with our”)
Combinations with a relative pronoun:
lassa(“with which”)
Descendants
Irish: le
Manx: lesh
Scottish Gaelic: le
Further reading
Gregory Toner, Maire Ní Mhaonaigh, Sharon Arbuthnot, Dagmar Wodtko, Maire-Luise Theuerkauf, editors (2019) , “la”, in eDIL: Electronic Dictionary of the Irish Language
Thurneysen, Rudolf (1940, reprinted 2003) D. A. Binchy and Osborn Bergin, transl., A Grammar of Old Irish, Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies, →ISBN, pages 272–73, 523
Old Occitan
Etymology
From Latinilla(m).
Article
la (masculinelo)
the; feminine singular definite article
Descendants
Catalan: la
Occitan: la
Portuguese
Pronunciation
IPA(key): /lɐ/
Pronoun
la
Alternative form of a(third-person feminine singular objective pronoun)used as an enclitic and mesoclitic following a verb form ending in a consonant (-z, -r and -s, but not -m); the consonant is elided and the preceding vowel takes an accent if necessary
Romanian
Alternative forms
ла(Moldavia)
Pronunciation
IPA(key): /la/
Rhymes: -a
Etymology 1
From Latinillac.
Preposition
la (+accusative)
at
to, towards
Etymology 2
From Latinlavāre, present active infinitive of lavō, from Proto-Indo-European*lewh₃-(“to wash”).
Alternative forms
(Transylvania)lăia
Verb
a la (third-person singular presentlă, past participlelăut) 1st conj.
(uncommon) to wash (especially the head)
Conjugation
Synonyms
se spăla, scălda, îmbăia
Derived terms
lăutoare, lăutură
Related terms
lături
lăun
spăla
Samoan
Noun
la
sun
Santa Catarina Albarradas Zapotec
Noun
la
name
References
Basic Vocabulary, page 63
Sicilian
Etymology
From Latinilla(m), from ille.
Article
laf sg (pluralli)
the
See also
South Slavey
Pronunciation
IPA(key): /ɮa/
Noun
la
work
References
Keren Rice (1989) A Grammar of Slave, Berlin, West Germany: Mouton de Gruyter, →ISBN, page 64
Southern Ndebele
Etymology
(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)
Pronoun
la
these; class 6 proximal demonstrative.
Spanish
Pronunciation
IPA(key): /la/, [la]
Etymology 1
From Old Spanishela, from Latinilla(m), feminine singular of ille.
Article
laf sg (masculineel, feminine plurallas, masculine plurallos)
the
Pronoun
la
accusative of ella, ello (when the antecedent's implied gender is feminine), and usted (when referring to a woman); her, it, you (formal)
impersonal neuter pronoun (accusative) in certain colloquial phrases: it, this
Usage notes
Sometimes used where English would prefer a possessive: tengo algo en la bolsa(literally “I have something in the bag”) as opposed to tengo algo en mi bolsa(“I have something in my bag”). This is especially true with body parts and with articles of clothing or similar accessories.
Where a feminine noun begins with stressed a- or ha-, el is used instead: el alma, el águila, el hacha. (The article remains la where an adjective intervenes between the article and the noun: la majestuosa águila.) The plural remains las.