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u¹ or U

(y)

n. pl. u's or U's also us or Us

1. The 21st letter of the modern English alphabet.

2. Any of the speech sounds represented by the letter u.

3. The 21st in a series.

4. Something shaped like the letter U.

5. U A grade that indicates an unsatisfactory status.

(click for a larger image)

passport, United States of America

This stylized font appears on the first page of US passports.

U²

()

Used as a courtesy title before the name of a man in a Burmese-speaking area.

[Burmese.]

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

Indo-European Roots

Semitic Roots

The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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