# alfalfa
## English
### Etymology

* PIE word
* *h₁éḱwos
From Spanish alfalfa, from Old Spanish alfalfez, from Arabic الْفَصْفَصَة (al-faṣfaṣa, “alfalfa, lucerne”).

### Pronunciation

* IPA: /ælˈfælfə/
* Audio (Southern England):(file)

### Noun

alfalfa (countable and uncountable, plural alfalfas)
* (uncountable) A plant, principally of Medicago sativa, grown as a pasture crop.
    Synonym: (British) lucerne
** 1937, John Steinbeck, Of Mice and Men‎, New York: Covici Friede, page 100:“No place for rabbits now, but I could easy build a few hutches and you could feed alfalfa to the rabbits.”
* (countable) A type or breed of this plant.

#### Derived terms

* Alfalfa
* alfalfa butterfly
* alfalfa caterpillar
* Alfalfa County
* alfalfa weevil

#### Descendants

* → Irish: alfalfa
* → Welsh: alffalffa

#### Translations
### Further reading

* alfalfa on Wikipedia.Wikipedia
* Medicago sativa on Wikispecies.Wikispecies
* Category:Medicago sativa on Wikimedia Commons.Wikimedia Commons
* alfalfa at USDA Plants database
* alfalfa at Integrated Taxonomic Information System.

## Finnish
### Etymology

From Spanish alfalfa.

### Pronunciation

* IPA: /ˈɑlfɑlfɑ/, [ˈɑ̝lfɑ̝lfɑ̝]
* Rhymes: -ɑlfɑlfɑ
* Hyphenation: al‧fal‧fa

### Noun

alfalfa
* alfalfa

#### Declension

Possessive forms of alfalfa (Kotus type 9/kala, no gradation) :
first-person singular possessor
singular
plural
nominative
alfalfani
alfalfani
accusative
nom.
alfalfani
alfalfani
gen.
alfalfani
genitive
alfalfani
alfalfojeni alfalfaini $^{rare}$
partitive
alfalfaani
alfalfojani
inessive
alfalfassani
alfalfoissani
elative
alfalfastani
alfalfoistani
illative
alfalfaani
alfalfoihini
adessive
alfalfallani
alfalfoillani
ablative
alfalfaltani
alfalfoiltani
allative
alfalfalleni
alfalfoilleni
essive
alfalfanani
alfalfoinani
translative
alfalfakseni
alfalfoikseni
abessive
alfalfattani
alfalfoittani
instructive
comitative
—alfalfoineni
second-person singular possessor
singular
plural
nominative
alfalfasi
alfalfasi
accusative
nom.
alfalfasi
alfalfasi
gen.
alfalfasi
genitive
alfalfasi
alfalfojesi alfalfaisi $^{rare}$
partitive
alfalfaasi
alfalfojasi
inessive
alfalfassasi
alfalfoissasi
elative
alfalfastasi
alfalfoistasi
illative
alfalfaasi
alfalfoihisi
adessive
alfalfallasi
alfalfoillasi
ablative
alfalfaltasi
alfalfoiltasi
allative
alfalfallesi
alfalfoillesi
essive
alfalfanasi
alfalfoinasi
translative
alfalfaksesi
alfalfoiksesi
abessive
alfalfattasi
alfalfoittasi
instructive
comitative
—alfalfoinesi
first-person plural possessor
singular
plural
nominative
alfalfamme
alfalfamme
accusative
nom.
alfalfamme
alfalfamme
gen.
alfalfamme
genitive
alfalfamme
alfalfojemme alfalfaimme $^{rare}$
partitive
alfalfaamme
alfalfojamme
inessive
alfalfassamme
alfalfoissamme
elative
alfalfastamme
alfalfoistamme
illative
alfalfaamme
alfalfoihimme
adessive
alfalfallamme
alfalfoillamme
ablative
alfalfaltamme
alfalfoiltamme
allative
alfalfallemme
alfalfoillemme
essive
alfalfanamme
alfalfoinamme
translative
alfalfaksemme
alfalfoiksemme
abessive
alfalfattamme
alfalfoittamme
instructive
comitative
—alfalfoinemme
second-person plural possessor
singular
plural
nominative
alfalfanne
alfalfanne
accusative
nom.
alfalfanne
alfalfanne
gen.
alfalfanne
genitive
alfalfanne
alfalfojenne alfalfainne $^{rare}$
partitive
alfalfaanne
alfalfojanne
inessive
alfalfassanne
alfalfoissanne
elative
alfalfastanne
alfalfoistanne
illative
alfalfaanne
alfalfoihinne
adessive
alfalfallanne
alfalfoillanne
ablative
alfalfaltanne
alfalfoiltanne
allative
alfalfallenne
alfalfoillenne
essive
alfalfananne
alfalfoinanne
translative
alfalfaksenne
alfalfoiksenne
abessive
alfalfattanne
alfalfoittanne
instructive
comitative
—alfalfoinenne
third-person possessor
singular
plural
nominative
alfalfansa
alfalfansa
accusative
nom.
alfalfansa
alfalfansa
gen.
alfalfansa
genitive
alfalfansa
alfalfojensa alfalfainsa $^{rare}$
partitive
alfalfaansa
alfalfojaan alfalfojansa
inessive
alfalfassaan alfalfassansa
alfalfoissaan alfalfoissansa
elative
alfalfastaan alfalfastansa
alfalfoistaan alfalfoistansa
illative
alfalfaansa
alfalfoihinsa
adessive
alfalfallaan alfalfallansa
alfalfoillaan alfalfoillansa
ablative
alfalfaltaan alfalfaltansa
alfalfoiltaan alfalfoiltansa
allative
alfalfalleen alfalfallensa
alfalfoilleen alfalfoillensa
essive
alfalfanaan alfalfanansa
alfalfoinaan alfalfoinansa
translative
alfalfakseen alfalfaksensa
alfalfoikseen alfalfoiksensa
abessive
alfalfattaan alfalfattansa
alfalfoittaan alfalfoittansa
instructive
comitative
—alfalfoineen alfalfoinensa :

#### Synonyms

* sinimailanen

### Further reading

* “alfalfa”, 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

## Irish
### Etymology

Borrowed from English alfalfa, from Spanish alfalfa.

### Noun

alfalfa m (genitive singular alfalfa)
* alfalfa, lucerne (Medicago sativa)

#### Declension

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

### 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) “alfalfa”, in Foclóir Gaeilge–Béarla, Dublin: An Gúm, →ISBN

## Italian
### Etymology

From Spanish alfalfa, from Arabic الْفَصْفَصَة (al-faṣfaṣa).

### Pronunciation

* IPA: /alˈfal.fa/
* Rhymes: -alfa
* Hyphenation: al‧fàl‧fa

### Noun

alfalfa f (uncountable)
* lucerne, alfalfa (Medicago sativa)
    Synonyms: erba medica, erba Spagna

## Old Galician-Portuguese
### Alternative forms

* alfarfa

### Etymology

Borrowed from Arabic الْفَصْفَصَة (al-faṣfaṣa).
Cognate with Old Catalan alfalç and Old Spanish alfalfez.

### Pronunciation

* IPA: /alˈfalfa/
* Rhymes: -alfa
* Hyphenation: al‧fal‧fa

### Noun

alfalfa f (plural alfalfas)
* alfalfa (Medicago sativa)
** [1253 December 26, [Reinado de Affonso III] (in Latin); republished as Portugaliae Monumenta Historica, volume I, Lisbon: Academia das Ciências de Lisboa, 1856, page 195:Et melior adiual de alfarfa ualeat quatuor denarios. Et melior solla de alfarfa ualeat tres denarios.(please add an English translation of this quotation)]
** 1335, [Foros de Beja]; republished as Collecção de ineditos de historia portugueza, volume V, Lisbon: Academia das Ciências de Lisboa, 1790, page 534:Da carrerga de sparto, e de baraços dalfalfa, e de soltas quatro dinheiros do maravide da boa moeda, que som per esta moeda dous mil dinheiros, que som oyto libras e sseys soldos e oito dinheiros, que som dous reaes de tres meia e biinte seis soldos e oito dinheiros.(please add an English translation of this quotation)

#### Descendants

* Galician: alfalfa, alforfa
* Portuguese: alfafa

### References

* José Pedro Machado (1995) “alfalfa”, in Dicionário etimológico da língua portuguesa: com a mais antiga documentação escrita e conhecida de muitos dos vocábulos estudados (in Portuguese), 7 edition, volume I, Lisboa: Livros Horizonte, →ISBN, page 189, column 2

## Spanish
### Pronunciation

* IPA: /alˈfalfa/ [alˈfal.fa]
* Rhymes: -alfa
* Syllabification: al‧fal‧fa

### Etymology 1

Inherited from Old Spanish alfalfez, from Arabic الْفَصْفَصَة (al-faṣfaṣa).

#### Alternative forms

* alfalfez (Argentina)

#### Noun

alfalfa f (plural alfalfas)
* alfalfa

##### Derived terms

* agua de alfalfa
* alfalfar

##### Descendants

* → English: alfalfa
** → Irish: alfalfa
** → Welsh: alffalffa
* → Italian: alfalfa
* → Tagalog: alpalpa

### Etymology 2
#### Verb

alfalfa
* inflection of alfalfar:
** third-person singular present indicative
** second-person singular imperative

### Further reading

* “alfalfa”, 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