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a·ba

(ə-bä, äbə)

1. A fabric woven of the hair of camels or goats.

2. A loose-fitting sleeveless garment made of this fabric or of wool, traditionally worn by Arabs.

3. See abaya.

[Arabic 'abā'.]

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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