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à la also a la

(ä lä, ä lə, ălə)

prep.

In the style or manner of: a poem à la Ogden Nash.

[French, short for à la mode de, in the manner of.]

a·la

(ālə)

n. pl. a·lae (ālē)

1. Zoology A wing or winglike structure or part.

2. Anatomy A flat, winglike anatomic process or part, especially of bone.

3. Botany The flattened border of some stems, fruits, and seeds, or either one of the two side petals of certain flowers in the pea family.

[Latin āla, wing.]

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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