alas (interj.)

mid-13c., from Old French ha, las (later French hélas), from ha "ah" + las "unfortunate," originally "tired, weary," from Latin lassus "weary" (from PIE root *‌‌lē- "to let go, slacken"). At first an expression of weariness rather than woe.

also from mid-13c.

Entries linking to alas

*lē-

Proto-Indo-European root meaning "to let go, slacken."

It forms all or part of: alas; allegiance; lassitude; last (adj.) "following all others;" late; latter; lenient; lenitive; lenity; let (v.) "allow;" let (n.) "stoppage, obstruction;" liege.

It is the hypothetical source of/evidence for its existence is provided by: Greek ledein "to be weary;" Latin lenis "mild, gentle, calm," lassus "faint, weary;" Lithuanian lėnas "quiet, tranquil, tame, slow," leisti "to let, to let loose;" Old Church Slavonic lena "lazy," Old English læt "sluggish, slow," lætan "to leave behind."

Trends of alas

adapted from books.google.com/ngrams/. Ngrams are probably unreliable.

More to Explore

flirtation

The date, alas, gives the lie to Chesterfield's charming story of its coinage (in The World, Dec. 5, 1754) but not his refinement...

joker

American manufacturers of playing-cards are wont to include a blank card at the top of the pack; and it is, alas!...

indolence

The Castle hight of Indolence, And its false Luxury; Where for a little Time, alas! We liv'd right jollity....

an idiot sometimes became a nidiot (1530s), which, with still-common casual pronunciation, became nidget (1570s), now, alas...

process

early 14c., proces, "fact of being carried on" (as in in process), from Old French proces "a journey; continuation, development; legal trial" (13c.) and directly from Latin processus "a going forward, advance, progress," from past-participle stem of procedere "go forward" (see pr

wing

late 12c., wenge, "forelimb fitted for flight of a bird or bat," also the part of some insects resembling a wing in form or function, from Old Norse vængr "wing of a bird, aisle, etc." (cognate with Danish and Swedish vinge "wing"), of unknown origin, perhaps from a Proto-Germani

insect

c. 1600, from Latin (animal) insectum "(animal) with a notched or divided body," literally "cut into," noun use of neuter past participle of insectare "to cut into, to cut up," from in- "into" (from PIE root *en "in") + secare "to cut" (from PIE root *sek- "to cut"). The Latin wo

barbarian

mid-14c., "foreign, of another nation or culture," from Medieval Latin barbarinus (see barbarian (n.)). The meaning "of or pertaining to savages, rude, uncivilized" is from 1590s....early 15c., in reference to classical history, "a non-Roman or non-Greek," earlier barbar (late 14

tribulation

"a state of affliction or oppression, suffering, distress," c. 1200, from Old French tribulacion (12c.), from Church Latin tribulationem (nominative tribulatio) "distress, trouble, affliction," noun of action from past-participle stem of tribulare "to oppress, afflict," a figurat

orient

late 14c., "the direction east; the part of the horizon where the sun first appears," also (now with capital O-) "the eastern regions of the world, eastern countries" (originally vaguely meaning the region east and south of Europe, what is now called the Middle East but also some

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updated on January 30, 2018

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