Definitions for Alpha
ˈæl fəAl·pha

Princeton's WordNet(1.00 / 1 vote)Rate this definition:

1. alpha(noun)

   the 1st letter of the Greek alphabet

2. alpha(adj)

   the beginning of a series or sequence

   "the Alpha and Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end"--Revelations

3. alpha(adj)

   first in order of importance

   "the alpha male in the group of chimpanzees"; "the alpha star in a constellation is the brightest or main star"

4. alpha(adj)

   early testing stage of a software or hardware product

   "alpha version"

Wiktionary(1.00 / 1 vote)Rate this definition:

1. alpha(Noun)

   The name of the first letter of the Greek alphabet (u0391, u03B1), followed by beta. In the Latin alphabet it is the predecessor to A.

   Etymology: From the , the first letter of the Greek alphabet, from the Phoenician aleph.

2. alpha(Noun)

   Latin alpha

   Etymology: From the , the first letter of the Greek alphabet, from the Phoenician aleph.

3. alpha(Noun)

   The name of the symbols u0391 and u03B1 used in science and mathematics, often interchangeable with the symbols when used as a prefix.

   Etymology: From the , the first letter of the Greek alphabet, from the Phoenician aleph.

4. alpha(Noun)

   The return of a given asset or portfolio adjusted for systematic risk.

   Etymology: From the , the first letter of the Greek alphabet, from the Phoenician aleph.

5. alpha(Noun)

   An alpha male.

   Etymology: From the , the first letter of the Greek alphabet, from the Phoenician aleph.

6. alpha(Noun)

   Alphabet.

   Etymology: From the , the first letter of the Greek alphabet, from the Phoenician aleph.

7. alpha(Adjective)

   Designates the first in an order of precedence.

   I am the alpha male.

   Etymology: From the , the first letter of the Greek alphabet, from the Phoenician aleph.

8. alpha(Adjective)

   Designates the brightest star in a constellation.

   When space travel becomes feasible, I plan to visit Alpha Centauri.

   Etymology: From the , the first letter of the Greek alphabet, from the Phoenician aleph.

Webster Dictionary(3.00 / 1 vote)Rate this definition:

1. Alpha(noun)

   the first letter in the Greek alphabet, answering to A, and hence used to denote the beginning

   Etymology: [L. alpha, Gr. 'a`lfa, from Heb. leph, name of the first letter in the alphabet, also meaning ox.]

Freebase(3.00 / 1 vote)Rate this definition:

1. Alpha

   Alpha is the first letter of the Greek alphabet. In the system of Greek numerals it has a value of 1. It was derived from the Phoenician letter aleph . Letters that arose from alpha include the Latin A and the Cyrillic letter А. In English, the noun "alpha" is used as a synonym for "beginning", or "first", reflecting its Greek roots.

Chambers 20th Century Dictionary(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. Alpha

   al′fa, n. the first letter of the Greek alphabet: the first or beginning. [Gr. alpha—Heb. aleph, an ox, the name of the first letter of the Phœnician and Hebrew alphabet. See A.]

Suggested Resources(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. alpha

   The alpha symbol -- In this Symbols.com article you will learn about the meaning of the alpha symbol and its characteristic.

2. alpha

   Song lyrics by alpha -- Explore a large variety of song lyrics performed by alpha on the Lyrics.com website.

British National Corpus

1. Nouns Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'Alpha' in Nouns Frequency: #2826

How to pronounce Alpha?

1. 

   Alex

   US English

   

   Daniel

   British

   

   Karen

   Australian

   

   Veena

   Indian

How to say Alpha in sign language?

Numerology

1. Chaldean Numerology

   The numerical value of Alpha in Chaldean Numerology is: 9

2. Pythagorean Numerology

   The numerical value of Alpha in Pythagorean Numerology is: 2

Examples of Alpha in a Sentence

1. Kerrisdale Capital Sahm Adrangi:

   The reason investors are paying hedge fund fees are to uncover alpha and shorting can help with that.

2. Philip Lubin:

   We could propel a 100 kilogram robotic craft to Mars in a few days. If you want to push something like shuttle class, it takes you roughly in order of month to get there, within 25 year light of Earth, there are actually quite a few potential exoplanets and habitable things to visit - that may be habitable. We don’t know of course. There are many targets to choose from. The closest is Alpha Centauri, which is about four light years away.

3. Rick Wilson:

   Donald Trump is basically conning conservatives. I underestimated how powerfully they want to be conned by this guy, they want to be told they're still going to be loved and respected in the morning. They want the big alpha male to sweep them off their feet and treat them roughly. They want that out of this guy.

4. Wynn Smiley:

   Our investigation revealed that no pledge was compelled to participate, regardless, the actions are contrary to the ideals and principles of Alpha Tau Omega and are highly offensive.

5. Buffalo State President Katherine Conway-Turner:

   Buffalo State College is aware of and continues to support the City of Buffalo Police Department’s investigation into an allegation of hazing involving Alpha Phi Alpha and Bradley D’Oyley at an off-campus location. While the investigation is conducted, the campus chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha has been suspended by both the college and the fraternity’s national governing body.

Images & Illustrations of Alpha

Popularity rank by frequency of use