# alfa
## Translingual
### Noun

alfa
* Alternative letter-case form of Alfa of the ICAO/NATO radiotelephony alphabet.

## English
### Etymology 1
#### Noun

alfa
* (international standards) Alternative letter-case form of Alfa from the NATO/ICAO Phonetic Alphabet.
* (international standards) Alternative spelling of alpha used in the ruleset of the international nonproprietary name system, where various digraphs are usually deprecated (except for grandfathered exceptions) because their replacement is translingually preferable (thus, for example, f, not ph; t, not th; and e, not ae).

### Etymology 2

From Fula alfaa. Compare Yoruba àlùfáà.

#### Noun

alfa (plural alfas)
* (Islam) A West African cleric or religious teacher.

## Asturian
### Etymology

From Ancient Greek ἄλφα (álpha), of Semitic origin.

### Noun

alfa f (plural alfes)
* alpha (Greek letter)

## Catalan
### Etymology

Borrowed from Ancient Greek ἄλφα (álpha), of Semitic origin.

### Pronunciation

* IPA: (Central, Balearic) [ˈal.fə]
* IPA: (Valencia) [ˈal.fa]

### Noun

alfa f (plural alfes)
* alpha (Greek letter)

#### Further reading

* “alfa” in Diccionari de la llengua catalana, segona edició, Institut d’Estudis Catalans.

## Czech
### Etymology

Borrowed from Ancient Greek ἄλφα (álpha), of Semitic origin.

### Noun

alfa n or f
* alpha

#### Declension

when feminine:
Indeclinable when neuter.

## Dutch
### Alternative forms

* alpha (superseded)

### Etymology

Ultimately from Ancient Greek ἄλφα (álpha), of Semitic origin. Doublet of alef.

### Pronunciation

* IPA: /ˈɑl.faː/
* Audio:(file)
* Hyphenation: al‧fa

### Noun

alfa f (plural alfa's, diminutive alfaatje n)
* the letter alpha (first letter of the Greek alphabet)
* Historically used in educational contexts to denote a humanistic orientation.
    Antonym: bèta
* someone who is educated in the humanities or otherwise prefers such subjects
    Antonym: bèta
* (ethology) a dominant animal

#### Derived terms

* alfamannetje
* alfawetenschap
* alfawijfje

### Further reading

* alfa on the Dutch Wikipedia.Wikipedia $^{nl}$

## Finnish

Greek letter :
| Αα | Previous: | n/a |
| Αα | Next: | beeta |

### Etymology

From Ancient Greek ἄλφα (álpha), of Semitic origin.

### Pronunciation

* IPA: /ˈɑlf(ː)ɑ/, [ˈɑ̝lf(ː)ɑ̝]
* Rhymes: -ɑlfɑ
* Hyphenation: al‧fa

### Noun

alfa
* alpha; the Greek letter Α, α
* alpha (person, especially a male, who is dominant, successful and attractive)

#### Declension

Possessive forms of alfa (Kotus type 9/kala, no gradation) :
first-person singular possessor
singular
plural
nominative
alfani
alfani
accusative
nom.
alfani
alfani
gen.
alfani
genitive
alfani
alfojeni alfaini $^{rare}$
partitive
alfaani
alfojani
inessive
alfassani
alfoissani
elative
alfastani
alfoistani
illative
alfaani
alfoihini
adessive
alfallani
alfoillani
ablative
alfaltani
alfoiltani
allative
alfalleni
alfoilleni
essive
alfanani
alfoinani
translative
alfakseni
alfoikseni
abessive
alfattani
alfoittani
instructive
comitative
—alfoineni
second-person singular possessor
singular
plural
nominative
alfasi
alfasi
accusative
nom.
alfasi
alfasi
gen.
alfasi
genitive
alfasi
alfojesi alfaisi $^{rare}$
partitive
alfaasi
alfojasi
inessive
alfassasi
alfoissasi
elative
alfastasi
alfoistasi
illative
alfaasi
alfoihisi
adessive
alfallasi
alfoillasi
ablative
alfaltasi
alfoiltasi
allative
alfallesi
alfoillesi
essive
alfanasi
alfoinasi
translative
alfaksesi
alfoiksesi
abessive
alfattasi
alfoittasi
instructive
comitative
—alfoinesi
first-person plural possessor
singular
plural
nominative
alfamme
alfamme
accusative
nom.
alfamme
alfamme
gen.
alfamme
genitive
alfamme
alfojemme alfaimme $^{rare}$
partitive
alfaamme
alfojamme
inessive
alfassamme
alfoissamme
elative
alfastamme
alfoistamme
illative
alfaamme
alfoihimme
adessive
alfallamme
alfoillamme
ablative
alfaltamme
alfoiltamme
allative
alfallemme
alfoillemme
essive
alfanamme
alfoinamme
translative
alfaksemme
alfoiksemme
abessive
alfattamme
alfoittamme
instructive
comitative
—alfoinemme
second-person plural possessor
singular
plural
nominative
alfanne
alfanne
accusative
nom.
alfanne
alfanne
gen.
alfanne
genitive
alfanne
alfojenne alfainne $^{rare}$
partitive
alfaanne
alfojanne
inessive
alfassanne
alfoissanne
elative
alfastanne
alfoistanne
illative
alfaanne
alfoihinne
adessive
alfallanne
alfoillanne
ablative
alfaltanne
alfoiltanne
allative
alfallenne
alfoillenne
essive
alfananne
alfoinanne
translative
alfaksenne
alfoiksenne
abessive
alfattanne
alfoittanne
instructive
comitative
—alfoinenne
third-person possessor
singular
plural
nominative
alfansa
alfansa
accusative
nom.
alfansa
alfansa
gen.
alfansa
genitive
alfansa
alfojensa alfainsa $^{rare}$
partitive
alfaansa
alfojaan alfojansa
inessive
alfassaan alfassansa
alfoissaan alfoissansa
elative
alfastaan alfastansa
alfoistaan alfoistansa
illative
alfaansa
alfoihinsa
adessive
alfallaan alfallansa
alfoillaan alfoillansa
ablative
alfaltaan alfaltansa
alfoiltaan alfoiltansa
allative
alfalleen alfallensa
alfoilleen alfoillensa
essive
alfanaan alfanansa
alfoinaan alfoinansa
translative
alfakseen alfaksensa
alfoikseen alfoiksensa
abessive
alfattaan alfattansa
alfoittaan alfoittansa
instructive
comitative
—alfoineen alfoinensa :

#### Derived terms

* alfafetoproteiini
* alfahajoaminen
* alfahiukkanen
* alfahydroksihappo
* alfa-kierre
* alfalinoleenihappo
* alfanaaras
* alfanumeerinen
* alfareseptori
* alfasalpaaja
* alfasolu
* alfasäde
* alfasäteilijä
* alfasäteily
* alfatalassemia
* alfatokoferoli
* alfauros
* kolmialfareaktio

### Further reading

* “alfa”, in Kielitoimiston sanakirja [Dictionary of Contemporary Finnish]‎ (in Finnish) (online dictionary, continuously updated), Kotimaisten kielten keskuksen verkkojulkaisuja 35, Helsinki: Kotimaisten kielten tutkimuskeskus (Institute for the Languages of Finland), 2004–, retrieved 2023-07-02

## French
### Etymology

From Arabic حَلْفَاء (ḥalfāʔ).

### Pronunciation

* IPA: /al.fa/
* Audio:(file)
* Homophone: alpha

### Noun

alfa m (plural alfas)
* esparto

#### Related terms

* alfatier

### Further reading

* “alfa”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.

## Galician
### Pronunciation

* IPA: [ˈalfɐ]

### Etymology 1

From Ancient Greek ἄλφα (álpha), of Semitic origin.

#### Noun

alfa m (plural alfas)
* alpha (Greek letter)

### Etymology 2

Unknown origin. Possibly related to Latin ārefacere through Galician alfar. Or Proto-Indo-European *h₂elbʰós.

#### Noun

alfa f (plural alfas)
* hot air expelled from an oven
* excessively hot air or wind
* blaze of the sun
* flame
    Synonyms: chama, lapa, laparada

##### Derived terms

* alfada

### Etymology 3
#### Verb

alfa
* inflection of alfar:
** third-person singular present indicative
** second-person singular imperative

### References

* Antón Luís Santamarina Fernández, editor (2006–2013), “alfa”, 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), “alfa”, in Tesouro informatizado da lingua galega (in Galician), Santiago de Compostela: Instituto da Lingua Galega
* Rosario Álvarez Blanco, editor (2014–2024), “alfa”, in Tesouro do léxico patrimonial galego e portugués (in Galician), Santiago de Compostela: Instituto da Lingua Galega, →ISSN

## Hungarian
### Etymology

From Ancient Greek ἄλφα (álpha), of Semitic origin.

### Pronunciation

* IPA: [ˈɒlfɒ]
* Hyphenation: al‧fa
* Rhymes: -fɒ

### Noun

alfa (plural alfák)
* alpha

#### Derived terms

* alfa-sejt

### Further reading

* alfa in Bárczi, Géza and László Országh. A magyar nyelv értelmező szótára (“The Explanatory Dictionary of the Hungarian Language”, abbr.: ÉrtSz.). Budapest: Akadémiai Kiadó, 1959–1962. Fifth ed., 1992: →ISBN
* alfa 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 2024).

## Icelandic
### Etymology

Borrowed from Ancient Greek ἄλφα (álpha), of Semitic origin.

### Noun

alfa f (genitive singular ölfu, nominative plural ölfur) or alfa n (genitive singular alfa, nominative plural ölfu)
* alpha (Greek letter)

#### Declension
## Indonesian
### Etymology

Borrowed from Ancient Greek ἄλφα (álpha), of Semitic origin. Doublet of alif.

### Pronunciation

* IPA: (standard) /ˈal.fa/, (dialectal) /ˈal.pa/
* Rhymes: -fa, -a
* Hyphenation: al‧fa

### Noun

alfa (plural alfa-alfa)
* alpha:
** 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.
** first, see alpha and omega.
    Synonyms: pertama, permulaan
** (astronomy) Alpha, the brightest star in a constellation according to the Bayer designation.
** (electronics) common-base current gain of a transistor in electronics.
** (statistics) the significance level of a statistical test; the alpha level.

### Further reading

* “alfa” in Kamus Besar Bahasa Indonesia, Jakarta: Agency for Language Development and Cultivation – Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology of the Republic of Indonesia, 2016.

## Irish
### Etymology 1

Borrowed from Ancient Greek ἄλφα (álpha), of Semitic origin.

#### Noun

alfa m (genitive singular alfa)
* alpha (Greek letter)

##### Derived terms

* alfa-cháithnín m (“alpha particle”)
* alfa-gha m (“alpha wave”)
* alfa-héilics m (“alpha helix”)
* alfa-radaíocht (“alpha radiation”)
* alfa-rithim (“alpha rhythm”)
* alfa-thástáil (“alpha test”)
* alfa-uimhir (“alphanumeric”, noun)
* alfa-uimhriúil (“alphanumeric”, adjective)
* fireannach alfa (“alpha male”)

### Etymology 2

From Arabic حَلْفَا (ḥalfā).

#### Noun

alfa m (genitive singular alfa)
* esparto, halfa

### Declension

bare forms
case
singular
nominative
alfa
vocative
a alfa
genitive
alfa
dative
alfa
forms with the definite article
case
singular
nominative
an t-alfa
genitive
an alfa
dative
leis an alfa don alfa :

### Mutation

Note: Certain mutated forms of some words can never occur in standard Modern Irish. All possible mutated forms are displayed for convenience.

### Further reading

* Ó Dónaill, Niall (1977) “alfa”, in Foclóir Gaeilge–Béarla, Dublin: An Gúm, →ISBN
* de Bhaldraithe, Tomás (1959) “alfa”, in English-Irish Dictionary, An Gúm
* “alfa”, in New English-Irish Dictionary, Foras na Gaeilge, 2013-2025

## Italian
### Pronunciation

* IPA: /ˈal.fa/
* Rhymes: -alfa
* Hyphenation: àl‧fa

### Etymology 1

From Ancient Greek ἄλφα (álpha), of Semitic origin.

#### Noun

alfa m or f (invariable)
* alpha, specifically:
** the name of the Greek-script letter Α/α
** The name of the Latin-script letter Ɑ/ɑ.; Latin alpha

##### Related terms

* alef
* alfabeto

### Etymology 2

Wikispecies $^{it}$ Borrowed from Arabic حَلْفَا (ḥalfā).

#### Noun

alfa f (plural alfe)
* a grass, Stipa tenacissima; esparto, halfa

#### See also

* sparto

### References

* ↑ alfa in Luciano Canepari, Dizionario di Pronuncia Italiana (DiPI)

### Anagrams

* fala

## Norwegian Bokmål
### Etymology

From Ancient Greek ἄλφα (álpha) (sense 1), and Arabic حَلْفَا (ḥalfā) (sense 2).

### Noun

alfa m (definite singular alfaen, indefinite plural alfaer, definite plural alfaene)
* alpha, first letter of the Greek alphabet.
* esparto grass, Stipa tenacissima

#### Synonyms

* (sense 2) alfagress

#### Derived terms

* alfastråling

### References

* “alfa” in The Bokmål Dictionary.
* “alfa_1” in Det Norske Akademis ordbok (NAOB).
* “alfa_2” in Det Norske Akademis ordbok (NAOB).

## Norwegian Nynorsk
### Etymology

From Ancient Greek ἄλφα (álpha) (sense 1), and Arabic حَلْفَا (ḥalfā) (sense 2).

### Noun

alfa m (definite singular alfaen, indefinite plural alfaer or alfaar, definite plural alfaene or alfaane)
* alpha, first letter of the Greek alphabet.
* esparto grass, Stipa tenacissima

#### Synonyms

* (sense 2) alfagras

#### Derived terms

* alfastråling

### References

* “alfa” in The Nynorsk Dictionary.

## Old Norse
### Noun

alfa
* accusative/genitive plural of alfr

## Polish
### Etymology

Learned borrowing from Ancient Greek ἄλφα (álpha), from Phoenician 𐤀 (ʾ /⁠ʾālep⁠/). First attested in 1533.

### Pronunciation

* IPA: /ˈal.fa/
* Audio:(file)
* Rhymes: -alfa
* Syllabification: al‧fa

### Noun

alfa f (indeclinable)
* alpha (Greek letter Α, α)
    umieć alfę z betą (Middle Polish) ― to be educated

#### Declension

Or indeclinable.

#### Derived terms

* alfa i omega
* cząsteczka alfa
* cząstka alfa
* promieniowanie alfa
* samica alfa
* samiec alfa
* stan alfa
* wersja alfa

### References

* ↑ Mirosław Bańko, Lidia Wiśniakowska (2021) “alfa”, in Wielki słownik wyrazów obcych, →ISBN
* ↑ Maria Renata Mayenowa, Stanisław Rospond, Witold Taszycki, Stefan Hrabec, Władysław Kuraszkiewicz (2010-2023) “alfa”, in Słownik Polszczyzny XVI Wieku [A Dictionary of 16th Century Polish]

### Further reading

* alfa in Wielki słownik języka polskiego, Instytut Języka Polskiego PAN
* alfa in Polish dictionaries at PWN
* Barbara Rykiel-Kempf (16.06.2020) “ALFA”, in Elektroniczny Słownik Języka Polskiego XVII i XVIII Wieku [Electronic Dictionary of the Polish Language of the XVII and XVIII Century]
* Samuel Bogumił Linde (1807–1814) “alfa”, in Słownik języka polskiego
* Aleksander Zdanowicz (1861) “alfa”, in Słownik języka polskiego, Wilno 1861
* J. Karłowicz, A. Kryński, W. Niedźwiedzki, editors (1900), “alfa”, in Słownik języka polskiego (in Polish), volume 1, Warsaw, page 24

## Portuguese
### Etymology

Borrowed from Latin alpha, from Ancient Greek ἄλφα (álpha), of Semitic origin. Doublet of alef.

### Pronunciation

* (Brazil) IPA: /ˈaw.fɐ/ [ˈaʊ̯.fɐ]
* (Brazil) IPA: /ˈaw.fɐ/ [ˈaʊ̯.fɐ]
** (Southern Brazil) IPA: /ˈaw.fa/ [ˈaʊ̯.fa]
* (Portugal) IPA: /ˈal.fɐ/ [ˈaɫ.fɐ]
* Rhymes: (Portugal) -alfɐ, (Brazil) -awfɐ
* Hyphenation: al‧fa

### Noun

alfa f (plural alfas)
* alpha (name of the Greek letter Α, α)
* (poetic) the beginning; the origin of something
    Synonyms: princípio, origem, começo
    Antonyms: ómega, ômega

## Romanian
### Etymology

Borrowed from Ancient Greek ἄλφα (álpha).

### Noun

alfa m (uncountable)
* alpha

#### Declension
## Serbo-Croatian
### Etymology

From Ancient Greek ἄλφα (álpha), of Semitic origin.

### Pronunciation

* IPA: /âlfa/
* Hyphenation: al‧fa

### Noun

ȁlfa f (Cyrillic spelling а̏лфа)
* alpha; the Greek letter Α, α

#### Declension
## Spanish
### Etymology

Borrowed from Ancient Greek ἄλφα (álpha), of Semitic origin.

### Pronunciation

* IPA: /ˈalfa/ [ˈal.fa]
* Audio (Venezuela):(file)
* Rhymes: -alfa
* Syllabification: al‧fa

### Noun

alfa f (plural alfas)
* alpha; the Greek letter Α, α

#### Usage notes

Alfa always takes the usual feminine articles la and una (la alfa, una alfa). This makes it an exception to the rule according to which feminine nouns beginning with stressed /ˈa/ frequently take the articles el and un otherwise reserved for masculine nouns (e.g., el alma, un alma).

#### Derived terms

* alfa y omega
* macho alfa
* onda alfa
* partícula alfa
* radiación alfa
* rayo alfa

#### Related terms

* álef

### Further reading

* “alfa”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.8, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 2024 December 10

## Swedish
### Etymology

From Ancient Greek ἄλφα (álpha), of Semitic origin.

### Noun

alfa n
* alpha; the Greek letter Α, α

### Anagrams

* fala