# el
## Translingual
### Symbol

el
* (international standards) ISO 639-1 language code for Greek.

## English
### Pronunciation

* IPA: /ˈɛl/, [ɛɫ]
* Audio (US):(file)
* Rhymes: -ɛl

### Etymology 1

From Middle English, from Old English el, from Latin el (the name of the letter L).

#### Alternative forms

* L
* ell

#### Noun

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.

##### Derived terms

* elpee

##### 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

    < Shortening (Early 20th c.)

#### Alternative forms

* L

#### Noun

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.

##### 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 Spanish el.

#### Article

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?

### Etymology 5
#### Noun

el (plural els)
* The name of the Cyrillic script letter Л / л

### Anagrams

* -le, LE, Le, LαE, le

## Aragonese
### Etymology

From Latin ille (“that one”).

### Pronoun

el
* him (direct object)
    Synonym: lo

## Aromanian
### Alternative forms

* elu

### Etymology

From Latin ille, possibly through a Vulgar Latin *illus. Compare Romanian el, Megleno-Romanian iel.

### Pronoun

el m (plural elj)
* (third-person masculine singular pronoun, nominative form) he
    Synonym: nãs

### Pronoun

el m
* (long/stressed accusative form) him

### Related terms

* 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)

### See also

* 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)

## Asturian
### Etymology

From Latin ille, illum.

### Pronunciation

* IPA: /el/ [el]

### Article

el m sg (feminine la, neuter lo, masculine plural los, feminine plural les)
* (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

* al
* col
* del
* nel
* pal
* pel
* pol
* sol

## Azerbaijani
### Etymology

From Proto-Turkic *ēl.

### Pronunciation

* IPA: /el/
* Audio:(file)

### Noun

el (definite accusative eli, plural ellər)
* (somewhat poetic) people
* (somewhat poetic) country, land
* (somewhat poetic) tract, region, district, province

#### Derived terms

* el-oba

## Breton
### Etymology

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

### Pronunciation

* IPA: /ɛl/

### 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 Latin illum, from Latin ille. The initial e- was inserted as an epenthetic vowel after the unstressed -o had begun to be dropped.

### Pronunciation

* (Balearic, Central) IPA: /əl/, [əɫ]
* (Valencia) IPA: /el/
* Audio:(file)

### Article

el m (feminine la, masculine plural els, feminine plural les)
* the; definite article
* 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

#### 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, contracted l', enclitic lo, contracted enclitic 'l)
* him (direct object)

#### Usage notes

* 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.

#### Declension

$^1$ 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-.

### 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, 2025
* “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
### Etymology

From Middle Cornish êl, eyl, eal, from Old Cornish ail, a borrowing from Proto-Brythonic *angel, from Latin angelus, from Ancient Greek ἄγγελος (ángelos). Cognate with Breton ael, Welsh angel.

### Noun

el m (plural eledh)
* (religion) angel

## Crimean Tatar
### Etymology

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

### Pronunciation

* This entry needs pronunciation information. If you are familiar with the IPA then please add some!

### Noun

el
* hand, forearm
* ell

#### Declension
### References

* Mirjejev, V. A., Usejinov, S. M. (2002) Ukrajinsʹko-krymsʹkotatarsʹkyj slovnyk [Ukrainian – Crimean Tatar Dictionary]‎, Simferopol: Dolya, →ISBN

## Czech
### Pronunciation

* IPA: [ˈɛl]

### Noun

el n (indeclinable)
* The name of the Latin-script letter L/l.

### Further reading

* “el”, in Příruční slovník jazyka českého (in Czech), 1935–1957
* “el”, in Slovník spisovného jazyka českého (in Czech), 1960–1971, 1989

## Dalmatian
### Alternative forms

* lo

### Etymology

From Latin ille, illud.

### Article

el
* the; masculine singular definite article

#### Related terms

* i
* la

## Danish
### Etymology 1

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.

#### Pronunciation

* IPA: /ɛl/, [ɛlˀ]

#### Noun

el c (singular definite ellen, plural indefinite elle)
* alder

##### Inflection
### Etymology 2

Introduced in the 1940’s after Swedish el, abbreviation of elektricitet (“electricity”).

#### Pronunciation

* IPA: /ɛl/, [ɛl]

#### Noun

el c (singular definite ellen, not used in plural form)
* electricity
    Synonym: strøm

## Dutch
### Etymology

From Middle Dutch elne, elle, from Old Dutch *elina, from Proto-West Germanic *alinu. Cognate with English ell, German Low German Ell, German Elle.

### Pronunciation

* IPA: /ɛl/
* Audio:(file)
* Hyphenation: el
* Rhymes: -ɛl
* Homophone: Ell

### Noun

el f or m (plural ellen, diminutive elletje n)
* (archaic) a unit of length corresponding to about 69 cm: ell, cubit

#### Derived terms

* elleboog
* ellepijp
* ellenlang

#### Descendants

* Negerhollands: el
* → Caribbean Javanese: élo
* → Sundanese: élo

## Emilian
### Pronunciation

* IPA: /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

| Number | Person | Gender | Disjunctive (tonic) | Nominative (subject) | Accusative (direct complement) | Dative (indirect complement) | Reflexive (-self) | Comitative (with) |
| Singular | First | — | mè | a | me | me | me | mêg |
| Singular | Second | — | tè | et | te | te | te | têg |
| Singular | Third | Masculine | ló | al | al | ge | se | sêg |
| Singular | Third | Feminine | lê | la | la | | ge | se | sêg |
| Plural | First | Masculine | nuēter | a | se | se | se | nōsk |
| Plural | First | Feminine | nuētri | a | se | se | se | nōsk |
| Plural | Second | Masculine | vuēter | a | ve | ve | ve | vōsk |
| Plural | Second | Feminine | vuētri | a | ve | ve | ve | vōsk |
| Plural | Third | Masculine | lôr | i | i | ge | se | sêg |
| Plural | Third | Feminine | lôr | el | li | ge | se | sêg |

## Esperanto
### Etymology

Obscure; may be derived from Latin ex (“out of”).

### Pronunciation

* IPA: [el]
* Audio:(file)
* Hyphenation: el

### Preposition

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.

#### Derived terms

* eldoni
* eliri
* elkreski
* elpensi
* elŝuti
* eltrovi
* elvoki

## Fala
### Etymology

From Latin ille (“that”).

### Pronunciation

* IPA: /ˈel/
* Rhymes: -el
* Syllabification: el

### Pronoun

el m sg (plural elis, feminine ela, feminine plural elas)
* Third person singular masculine nominative pronoun; he

#### See also

Dialects:  $^L$ Lagarteiru   $^M$ Mañegu   $^V$ Valverdeñu

### References

* Valeš, Miroslav (2021) Diccionariu de A Fala: lagarteiru, mañegu, valverdeñu (web)‎, 2nd edition, Minde, Portugal: CIDLeS, published 2022, →ISBN

## Franco-Provençal
### Etymology

Inherited from Latin illa.

### Pronoun

el f (postpositive -el) (ORB, broad)
* she, it (third-person singular feminine nominative)

#### See also

| singular | nominative | accusative | dative | tonic$^1$ | possessive$^2$ |
| 1st person | jo | mè | mè | mè | min |
| 2nd person | te | tè | tè | tè | tin |
| 3rd person masculine | il | lo / le | lui | lui | sin |
| 3rd person feminine | el | la | lyé | lyé | | sin |
| 3rd person neuter | o | o | y | — | sin |
| 3rd person reflexive | — | sè | sè | sè | | | sin |
| plural | nominative | accusative | dative | tonic$^1$ | possessive$^2$ |
| 1st person | nos | nos | nos | nos | noutro |
| 2nd person | vos | vos | vos | vos | voutro |
| 3rd person masculine | ils | los / les | lor | lor | lor |
| 3rd person feminine | els | les | lor / lyés | lor / lyés | | lor |
| 3rd person reflexive | — | sè | sè | sè | | | lor |
| $^1$ Disjunctive or object of a preposition. | $^1$ Disjunctive or object of a preposition. | $^2$ Generally preceded by a definite article. | $^2$ Generally preceded by a definite article. | $^2$ Generally preceded by a definite article. | $^2$ Generally preceded by a definite article. |

### References

* elle [1] in DicoFranPro: Dictionnaire Français/Francoprovençal – on dicofranpro.llm.umontreal.ca
* el in Lo trèsor Arpitan – on arpitan.eu

## Galician
### Alternative forms

* ile, il
* ele (reintegrationist)

### Etymology

From Latin ille (“that”).

### Pronunciation

* IPA: /ˈel/
* Rhymes: -el
* Hyphenation: el

### Pronoun

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)
    Que cousa preciosa! El será pecado? ― What a precious thing! Could it be a sin?

### See also
#### 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 contracts to doucho (“I gave it to you”).

#### Related terms

* ela
* elas
* eles

### References

* Ernesto Xosé González Seoane, María Álvarez de la Granja, Ana Isabel Boullón Agrelo (2006–2022) “el”, in Dicionario de Dicionarios do galego medieval (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
### Etymology

From Portuguese ele. Cognate with Kabuverdianu el.

### 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: [ˈɛl]
* Audio:(file)
* Rhymes: -ɛl

### Adverb

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.

#### Usage notes

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.
   * Anna elment? Nem ment el. ― Has Anna left [gone away]? No, she has not.

#### Derived terms

* eladdig
* elvégre

### Interjection

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”)

### See also

* ell

### Further reading

* el 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
* 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 2024).

### Anagrams

* le

## Icelandic
### Pronunciation

* IPA: /ɛːl/
* Rhymes: -ɛːl

### Verb

el
* first-person singular present indicative of ala

## Ido
### Pronunciation

* IPA: /el/, /ɛl/

### Pronoun

el (plural eli, possessive elua, possessive plural elui)
* Apocopic form of elu; she, her

### See also

* The possessive plurals are seldom used.
* The shortened forms are preferred.
* The pangendered forms are preferred to the gendered or neuter forms in most scenarios.

## Indonesian
### Etymology

From Dutch el.

### Pronunciation

* IPA: /ɛl/, [ɛl]

### Noun

èl (plural el-el)
* The name of the Latin-script letter L/l.

#### See also

* (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

### Further reading

* “el” 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.

## Istriot
### Etymology 1

From Latin illum < 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 Latin ille.

#### Article

el m sg (feminine la)
* the

## Italian
### Pronunciation

* IPA: /ˈel/
* Rhymes: -el
* Hyphenation: él
* (stressed, determiner) IPA: /ˈel/
** Hyphenation: él
* (unstressed, article and contraction) IPA: /el/

### Article

el m sg
* Archaic and regional form of il

### Pronoun

el m
* (rare, literary) Apocopic form of ello

### Contraction

el
* (obsolete) Contraction of e il: and the

#### Alternative forms

* e'l

### Anagrams

* -le, LE, Le, le

## Jamaican Creole
### Etymology

Derived from English hell

### Pronunciation

* IPA: /ɛl/

### Noun

el (plural el dem, quantified 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.

## Kabuverdianu
### Etymology

From Portuguese ele.

### Pronoun

el
* he, she (third person singular)

## Kabyle
### Verb

el (verbal noun ayla)
* (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: /el/

### Article

el (Hebrew spelling איל, plural los, feminine la)
* the (masculine singular)

### Pronoun

el (Hebrew spelling איל)
* he, it

## Latin
### Pronunciation

* (Classical Latin) IPA: /ˈel/, [ˈɛɫ̪]
* (modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA: /ˈel/, [ˈɛl]

### Noun

el f (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 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).

#### 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.
* 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: [ɛl]
* Audio:(file)

### Noun

el m (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 Latin ille.

### Article

el m sg (feminine la, neuter lu, masculine plural los, feminine plural les)
* 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:
    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

## Lower Sorbian
### Pronunciation

* IPA: /ɛl/

### Noun

el m inan
* The name of the Latin-script letter l/L.

### See also

* (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

## Middle Dutch
### Etymology

From Old Dutch *elli, from Proto-West Germanic *alljas.

### Pronunciation

* IPA: /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
### Alternative forms

* eel, ele, hele, iel, yele

### Etymology

From Old English ǣl, from Proto-West Germanic *āl, from Proto-Germanic *ēlaz.

### Pronunciation

* IPA: /ɛːl/, /eːl/

### Noun

el (plural eles)
* eel

#### Descendants

* English: eel
* Scots: eel
* Yola: eale

#### References

* “ēl(e, n.(3).”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007, retrieved 2019-03-03.

## Middle Welsh
### Pronunciation

* IPA: /eːl/

### Verb

el
* third-person singular present subjunctive of mynet

## Mirandese
### Pronoun

el
* he

## Norwegian Bokmål
### Etymology

Borrowed from Swedish el.

### 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 Swedish el.

#### Noun

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.

##### Derived terms

* elbil
* elmotor

### Etymology 2

From Old Norse él.

#### Pronunciation

* IPA: /eːl/

#### Noun

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}}.

### Etymology 3

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

#### Verb

el
* present tense of ala

### Etymology 4

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

#### Verb

el
* present tense of elja

### References

* “el” in The Nynorsk Dictionary.

## Occitan
### Etymology

From Old Occitan [Term?], from Latin ille.

### Pronunciation

* Audio (Languedoc):(file)

### Pronoun

el
* he (third-person singular subject pronoun)
* it (third-person singular subject pronoun)

## Old English
### Pronunciation

* IPA: /el/

### Noun

el m
* el, the letter L

## Old French
### Etymology 1
#### Alternative forms

* enl (very rare)

#### Contraction

el
* Contraction of en le (“in the”).
** c. 1250, Marie de France, Equitan:m'est une anguisse el quer ferue, ki tut le cors me fet tremblerSuch a pain has pierced my heart, that it makes my whole body quiver

### Etymology 2

From Latin alius.

#### Pronoun

el
* something else
** c. 1150, Thomas d'Angleterre, Le Roman de Tristan, Champion Classiques edition, →ISBN, page 94, lines 857–8:ne puet en sun cuer el penser fors ço sul: Tristran amer.she cannot in her heart think of anything else apart from one thing: to love Tristan.

## Old Galician-Portuguese
### Pronoun

el
* Apocopic form of ele
** a. 1284, Alfonso X of Castile, Cantigas de Santa Maria, Códice de los músicos, cantiga 14 (facsimile):
    fugiu con el a Egipto. terra de Reẏ Faraon.
       ran away with him to Egypt, land of the Pharaoh king.

## Old Norse
### Verb

el
* first-person singular active present indicative of ala

## Portuguese
### Etymology

From Latin ille. Akin to Catalan el and Spanish el.

### Pronunciation

* (Brazil) IPA: /ˌɛw/ [ˌɛʊ̯]
* (Portugal) IPA: /ˌɛl/ [ˌɛɫ]
* Rhymes: -ɛl
* Hyphenation: el

### Article

el m sg
* Only used in el-rei: the

## Romanian
### Etymology

Inherited from Vulgar Latin *illus, from Latin ille.

### Pronunciation

* IPA: /jel/
* Audio:(file)
* Audio:(file)

### Pronoun

el m (third-person singular, plural ei, feminine equivalent ea)
* (nominative form) he
    Synonym: (polite form) dumnealui

#### Declension
### Pronoun

el m (stressed accusative form of el)
* (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 Latin ille.

### Pronoun

el
* he

## Salar
### Etymology

Cognate with Turkmen, Turkish el (“hand”), Azerbaijani əl, Chuvash алӑ (ală), etc.

### Pronunciation

* (Xunhua, Hualong, Qinghai, Ili, Xinjiang) IPA: /el/
* (Mengda, Xunhua, Qinghai) IPA: /en/

### Noun

el (3rd person possessive ili, plural eller)
* (anatomy) hand
    Synonym: uc

### References

* Potanin, G.N. (1893) “эль”, in Тангутско-Тибетская окраина Китая и Центральная Монголия (in Russian), page 428
* Yanchuk, Mikola Andriyovich (1893) “эль”, in Этнографическое ОбозрѢніе: Императорскаго Общества Любителей Естествознанія, Антропологіи и Этнографіи [Ethnographical Review: Imperial Society of Lovers of Natural History, Anthropology and Ethnography]‎ (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 374
* Poppe, Nicholas (1953). Remarks on The Salar Language. Harvard Journal of Asiatic Studies, 16(3/4), 438–477.
* Kakuk, S. (1962) “el”, in “Un Vocabulaire Salar”, in Acta Orientalia Academiae Scientiarum Hungaricae‎, volume 14, number 2, Akadémiai Kiadó, →ISBN, pages 173-196
* Tenishev, Edhem (1976) “el”, in Stroj salárskovo jazyká [Grammar of Salar], Moscow, pages 323-324
* 林莲云 [Lin Lianyun] (1985) “el”, in 撒拉语简志 [A Brief History of Salar]‎, 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, 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, 1st edition, Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz Verlag, →ISBN, pages 43, 87
* 张, 进锋 (Ayso Cañ Cinfen) (2008) 乌璐别格 (Ulubeğ), 鄭初陽 (Çuyañ Yebey oğlı Ceñ), editors, Salar İbret Sözler 撒拉尔谚语 [Salar Proverbs]‎, 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 (Sāwéihàncídiǎn) [Salar-Uyghur-Chinese dictionary] (in Chinese), 1st edition, Beijing, →ISBN, page 99
* “el” in Ölmez, Mehmet (2012 December) “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 [Chao Ke] (2014) “el”, in 撒拉语366条会话读本 [Salar 366 Conversation Reader]‎, 1st edition, 社会科学文献出版社 [Social Science Literature Press], →ISBN, page 108
* 马伟 (Ma Wei), 朝克 (Chao Ke) (2016) “el”, in 濒危语言——撒拉语研究 [Endangered Languages ​​- Salar Language Studies], 青海 (Qinghai): 国家社会科学基金项目 (National Social Science Foundation Project), page 107

## Spanish
### Pronunciation

* IPA: /el/ [el]
* Audio (Colombia):(file)
* Rhymes: -el
* Syllabification: el
* An example use of el in Spanish:(file) (el gato y el perro)

### Etymology 1

From Latin ille.

#### Article

el (plural los, feminine la, feminine plural las, neuter lo)
* masculine singular definite article; the

##### Usage notes

* 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 terreste más veloz.Cheetahs are the fastest land animal.
    El amor es siempre paciente y amable.Love is always patient and kind.

##### Derived terms

* el que
* el que sea

##### Related terms

* él
* le
* lo

### Etymology 2

From Old Spanish ela, from Latin illa.

#### Article

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

### Further reading

* “el”, 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

### 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 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

### Pronunciation

* IPA: /eːl/
* Rhymes: -eːl

### Noun

el c
* 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 kommunerelectric 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.
* (school slang) Short for el- och energiprogrammet.
    Jag går el.I study at the electrical engineering programme(literally, “I go electrical.”)

#### Related terms

* elanvändning
* elavbrott
* elkabel
* elkraft
* elmätare
* elnät
* elström
* elstängsel
* elsäkerhet
* elverk
* elöverföring
* elöverkänslig

### References

* el in Svensk ordbok (SO)
* el in Svenska Akademiens ordlista (SAOL)

### Anagrams

* le

## Tagalog
### Etymology

From English el, the English name of the letter L/l.

### Pronunciation

* (Standard Tagalog) IPA: /ʔel/ [ʔɛl]
* Rhymes: -el
* Syllabification: el

### Noun

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

#### See also

* (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

### Further reading

* “el”, in Pambansang Diksiyonaryo | Diksiyonaryo.ph, Manila, 2018

## Ternate
### Pronunciation

* IPA: [(ʔ)el]

### Verb

el
* Alternative form of eli (“to remember”)

#### Conjugation
### References

* Rika Hayami-Allen (2001) A descriptive study of the language of Ternate, the northern Moluccas, Indonesia, University of Pittsburgh

## Turkish
### Pronunciation

* IPA: /el/
* Audio:(file)

### Etymology 1

From Ottoman Turkish ال (el), from Proto-Turkic *elig (“hand”), may be related to Proto-Turkic *ạl- (“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.

#### Noun

el (definite accusative eli, plural eller)
* hand
* 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.

##### Derived terms

* el arabası
* ele geçirmek

### Etymology 2

From Ottoman Turkish ایل (el), from Proto-Common Turkic *ēl (“people”).

#### Noun

el (definite accusative eli, plural eller)
* a foreign person

##### Derived terms

* el gün

### Etymology 3

From Ottoman Turkish ایل (el), from Proto-Turkic *ēl (“realm”). Doublet of il. Cognate with Old Turkic [script needed] (él), Kazakh ел (el), Azerbaijani el, etc.

#### Noun

el (definite accusative eli, plural eller)
* country, homeland, province

##### Declension

singular
plural
nominative
el
eller
definite accusative
eli
elleri
dative
ele
ellere
locative
elde
ellerde
ablative
elden
ellerden
genitive
elin
ellerin
Possessive forms
nominative
singular
plural
1st singular
elim
ellerim
2nd singular
elin
ellerin
3rd singular
eli
elleri
1st plural
elimiz
ellerimiz
2nd plural
eliniz
elleriniz
3rd plural
elleri
elleri
definite accusative
singular
plural
1st singular
elimi
ellerimi
2nd singular
elini
ellerini
3rd singular
elini
ellerini
1st plural
elimizi
ellerimizi
2nd plural
elinizi
ellerinizi
3rd plural
ellerini
ellerini
dative
singular
plural
1st singular
elime
ellerime
2nd singular
eline
ellerine
3rd singular
eline
ellerine
1st plural
elimize
ellerimize
2nd plural
elinize
ellerinize
3rd plural
ellerine
ellerine
locative
singular
plural
1st singular
elimde
ellerimde
2nd singular
elinde
ellerinde
3rd singular
elinde
ellerinde
1st plural
elimizde
ellerimizde
2nd plural
elinizde
ellerinizde
3rd plural
ellerinde
ellerinde
ablative
singular
plural
1st singular
elimden
ellerimden
2nd singular
elinden
ellerinden
3rd singular
elinden
ellerinden
1st plural
elimizden
ellerimizden
2nd plural
elinizden
ellerinizden
3rd plural
ellerinden
ellerinden
genitive
singular
plural
1st singular
elimin
ellerimin
2nd singular
elinin
ellerinin
3rd singular
elinin
ellerinin
1st plural
elimizin
ellerimizin
2nd plural
elinizin
ellerinizin
3rd plural
ellerinin
ellerinin
Predicative forms
singular
plural
1st singular
elim
ellerim
2nd singular
elsin
ellersin
3rd singular
el eldir
eller ellerdir
1st plural
eliz
elleriz
2nd plural
elsiniz
ellersiniz
3rd plural
eller
ellerdir :

##### Derived terms

* elçi

## Venetan
### Alternative forms

* al — Belluno

### Etymology

From Latin illum < ille.

### Article

el m sg (plural i)
* the

#### Related terms

* ła

### Pronoun

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.

## Volapük
### Article

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.

#### 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.

#### Derived terms

* hiel
* jiel

## Welsh
### Pronunciation

* IPA: /ɛl/

### Noun

el f (plural eliau)
* The name of the Latin-script letter L/l.

### Mutation

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

### 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 / u gwpan, fi, w, ecs, y, sèd