aba

aba

1. (international standards) ISO 639-3 language code for Abé.

• Wiktionary’s coverage of Abé terms

Borrowed from Arabic عَبَاءَة (ʕabāʔa). Compare abaya.

• abba

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /əˈbɑː/

• Audio (Southern England):

  (file)

• (General American) IPA^(key): /əˈbɑ/
• Rhymes: (Received Pronunciation) -ɑː, (General American) -ɑ

aba (countable and uncountable, plural abas)

1. A coarse, often striped, felted fabric from the Middle East, woven from goat or camel hair.
2. A loose-fitting sleeveless garment, made from aba or silk, worn by Arabs. [First attested in the early 19^th century.]^[1]
   • 1934, Agatha Christie, chapter 5, in Murder on the Orient Express, London: HarperCollins, published 2017, page 110:

     'A pale mauve abba such as you buy in the East.'

   • 1957, Lawrence Durrell, Justine:

     Here Nessim would sit night after night in the winter, dressed in his old rust-coloured abba, staring gravely at Betelgeuse, or hovering over books of calculations for all the world like a medieval soothsayer.

3. An outer garment made of the above, very simple in form, worn by the Arabs of the desert. The illustration shows such an aba, made of two breadths of stuff sewed together to make an oblong about four by nine feet.
4. Such a garment that is specific to women.

   Holonym: hijab

   Coordinate terms: burka, chador, chadri, niqab

• (all senses): abaya

• From the name of its creator, the French explorer A. T. d' Abbadie.

• (US) IPA^(key): /ˈæ.bə/

• Audio (Southern England):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -æbə

aba (plural abas)

1. An altazimuth used for astronomy on either land or water.

aba (plural abas)

1. An electric fish of species Gymnarchus niloticus (frankfish, freshwater rat-tail, African knifefish), found in swamps, lakes and rivers in Africa.

• Aba in the Encyclopædia Britannica (11th edition, 1911)
• Century Dictionary, volume 1, 1889, page 3

• AAB, BAA, baa

• Tone: LH^[1]

aba (plural aba)

1. seed(s)^[2][1]
2. fruit^[2][1]

• wawa aba

• abë — dialectal, Gheg

Borrowed from Ottoman Turkish عبا (ʼaba).

• IPA^(key): /aˈba/
• Rhymes: -a

aba f (definite abaja)

1. (archaic) thin felt (usually white or gray)

   Synonyms: zhgun, shajak

2. aba (Middle Eastern garment)

• FMGJSH (2026), “abá,~ja^1–2”
• FGJSSH (1980), page 1b: “abá,~ja”
• Bashkimi (1908), page 17a: “abe”
• Jungg (1895), page 1a: “ab”
• Etymological:
  • Çabej SE, vol. 2, pages 6f.: “abá”
  • Topalli (2017), page 69ab: “abá”
  • Bufli & Rocchi (2021), page 27: “*abë”

Probably cognate with Tibetan ཨ་ཕ (a pha), Garo apa.

aba

1. father

• P. T. Abraham, Apatani-English-Hindi Dictionary (1987)

• IPA^(key): /ɑˈbɑ/

• Audio (Baku):

  (file)

• Hyphenation: a‧ba

Inherited from Proto-Turkic *apa (“father”).

aba (definite accusative abanı, plural abalar)

1. (Gadabay, Quba, Ordubad, Zangilan) father

   Synonym: ata

Inherited from Proto-Common Turkic *apa (“mother, elder sister, aunt”).

aba (definite accusative abanı, plural abalar)

1. (Jabrayil, Qakh, Shamkir, Tabriz) mother

   Synonym: ana

2. (dialectal) elder sister
3. (dialectal) elder sister-in-law

Derived from Arabic عَبَاءَة (ʕabāʔa).

aba (definite accusative abanı, plural abalar)

1. aba

• Axundov A. A., Kazımov Q. Ş., Behbudov S. M., editors (2007), “aba I”, in Azərbaycan dilinin dialektoloji lüğəti [Dialectological Dictionary of the Azerbaijani Language] (in Azerbaijani), Baku: Şərq-Qərb, →ISBN, page 11a
• Axundov A. A., Kazımov Q. Ş., Behbudov S. M., editors (2007), “aba II”, in Azərbaycan dilinin dialektoloji lüğəti [Dialectological Dictionary of the Azerbaijani Language] (in Azerbaijani), Baku: Şərq-Qərb, →ISBN, page 11a
• Starostin, Sergei; Dybo, Anna; Mudrak, Oleg (2003), “*apa-”, in Etymological dictionary of the Altaic languages (Handbuch der Orientalistik; VIII.8), Leiden, New York, Köln: E.J. Brill
• Starostin, Sergei; Dybo, Anna; Mudrak, Oleg (2003), “*appa-”, in Etymological dictionary of the Altaic languages (Handbuch der Orientalistik; VIII.8), Leiden, New York, Köln: E.J. Brill

Coined by Basque nationalist, writer and politician Sabino Arana in the 19th century, from a misinterpretation of the kinship suffix -ba.

• IPA^(key): /aba/ [a.β̞a]

• Audio:

  (file)

• Rhymes: -aba, -a
• Hyphenation: a‧ba

aba anim

1. (rare) father

   Synonym: aita

• “aba”, in Orotariko Euskal Hiztegia [General Basque Dictionary], Euskaltzaindia, 1987–2005

• IPA^(key): /ˈaba/

aba

1. maize
2. corncob
3. maize crop

• Gómez Aldana D. F., Análisis morfológico del Vocabulario 158 de la Biblioteca Nacional de Colombia. Grupo de Investigación Muysccubun. 2013.

• IPA^(key): /ˈaba/

aba f (plural abe)

1. alternative form of apa

• https://infcor.adecec.net/

Inherited from Proto-Arawa *aba-.

aba f

1. fish

• “aba” in Gordon Koop, Lois Koop, Dicionário deni-português, Associação Internacional de Lingüística - SIL Brasil, 1985.

• IPA^(key): /ɑˈpɑ/

aba

1. father

• IPA^(key): /ˈɑpɑ/

aba

1. paternal uncle (father's younger brother)

aba

1. taro

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

• IPA^(key): /à.bà/

• Audio:

  (file)

àbà (definite singular àbà lá or àbàà, plural àbàwó, definite plural àbààwó)

1. sleeping mat (traditionally woven from palm leaves)
2. (by extension) mat in general
3. bed

• Westermann, Dietrich Verfasser (1905), “aba”, in Wörterbuch der Ewe-Sprache [Dictionary of the Ewe language]‎^[5] (in German), Berlin: Dietrich Reimer, section I, page 2
• Westermann, Dietrich Verfasser (1906), “aba”, in Wörterbuch der Ewe-Sprache [Dictionary of the Ewe language]‎^[6] (in German), Berlin: Dietrich Reimer, section II, page 31
• Fiagã, Kwasi (1976), Grammaire eʋe: Eʋegbe ŋutinunya‎^[7] (in French), Lomé: Institut national de la recherche scientifique, page 101
• Jim-Fugar, Dr. M.K.N.; Jim-Fugar, Nicholine (2017), “aba”, in Nuseline's Ewe-English Dictionary, 1st edition, Togo: Independently published, →ISBN, page 6

Uncertain. Cognate with Portuguese aba, Spanish álabe, French aube, Romanian aripă.^[1]

• IPA^(key): /ˈaba/ [ˈa.β̞ɐ]
• Rhymes: -aba
• Hyphenation: a‧ba

aba f (plural abas)

1. slope, hillside

   Synonyms: faldra, pé

2. apron, smock; folds of a shirt or dress

   Synonym: faldra

3. (anatomy) lap

   Synonym: colo

4. brim of a hat
5. rim

   Synonym: bordo

• Antón Luís Santamarina Fernández, editor (2006–2013), “aba”, in Dicionario de Dicionarios da lingua galega [Dictionary of Dictionaries of the Galician language] (in Galician), Santiago de Compostela: Instituto da Lingua Galega
• “aba”, in Dicionario da Real Academia Galega (in Galician), A Coruña: Royal Galician Academy, 2012–2026
• Antón Luís Santamarina Fernández, Ernesto Xosé González Seoane, María Álvarez de la Granja, editors (2003–2018), “aba”, in Tesouro informatizado da lingua galega (in Galician), Santiago de Compostela: Instituto da Lingua Galega
• Rosario Álvarez Blanco, editor (2014–2024), “aba”, in Tesouro do léxico patrimonial galego e portugués (in Galician), Santiago de Compostela: Instituto da Lingua Galega, →ISSN

aba

1. romanization of 𐌰𐌱𐌰

From Fante aba, corresponding to Twi Akan ya ("girl who was born on Thursday").

• IPA^(key): /ʔɑ.bɑ/

aba (’aba)

1. (Given name, feminine) Thursday

• Lorenzo Dow Turner, Africanisms in the Gullah Dialect (1969)

From French à bas.

• IPA^(key): /aba/

aba

1. down with...!

   Aba lenjistis!

   Down with injustice!

• Albert Valdman, Iskra Iskrova, editors, compiled by Albert Valdman (2007), Haitian Creole-English Bilingual Dictionary‎^[8], Bloomington: Indiana University Creole Institute, →ISBN, page 1
• Targète, Jean; Urciolo, Raphael (1993), Haitian Creole-English Dictionary‎^[9], Dunwoody Press, →ISBN, page 1

From Greater Central Philippine *habaʔ (“long (object)”). Compare Ilocano akaba, Kapampangan kaba / aba, Tagalog haba, Central Bikol laba, Aklanon haba, Hiligaynon laba, and Tausug haba'.

• aba'

• IPA^(key): /ˈʔaba/ [ˈʔa.ba], /ˈʔabaʔ/ [ˈʔa.bɐʔ]
• Rhymes: -aba, -abaʔ
• Syllabification: a‧ba

aba or abà (Hanunoo spelling ᜠᜪ)

1. length (distance along the longest dimension)

aba or abà (plural araba, Hanunoo spelling ᜠᜪ)

1. long (having much distance from one point to another)

From Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *abá. Compare Tagalog aba.

• IPA^(key): /ʔaˈba/ [ʔaˈba]
• Rhymes: -a
• Syllabification: a‧ba

abá (Hanunoo spelling ᜠᜪ)

1. an exclamation of surprise, admiration, wonder

   Synonym: aba-aba

• The word aba-aba is more used.

• Conklin, Harold C. (1953), Hanunóo-English Vocabulary (University of California Publications in Linguistics), volume 9, London, England: University of California Press, →OCLC, page 17

From Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *abá.

abá

1. alas, gosh, well, whew
2. wow

abâ

1. (questioning) really
2. (questioning) ah, oh

abá

1. (anatomy) shoulder blade

abá

1. to carry on one's back

Borrowed from Ottoman Turkish عبا (abâ, “aba, a stout woollen cloth; a cloak or jacket made of this cloth”) (compare Bulgarian аба́ (abá), Romanian aba, Serbo-Croatian aba / аба), from Arabic عَبَاءَة (ʕabāʔa, “cloak, frock”). First attested in 1556.^[1]

• IPA^(key): [ˈɒbɒ]
• Rhymes: -bɒ
• Hyphenation: aba
• Syllabification: a‧ba
• Homophone: Aba

aba (plural abák)

1. (archaic or dialectal) a thick, coarse, fulled cloth, typically woven from the wool of sheep or goats, usually undyed and of lower quality

   Synonym: abaposztó

   Hypernym: posztó

   Coordinate term: szűrposztó

2. (archaic or dialectal) an (upper) garment made of this cloth

   Synonym: abaposztó

• aba and (with subscription) aba  in Ferenc Pusztai, editor, Magyar értelmező kéziszótár [A Concise Explanatory Dictionary of Hungarian] (ÉKsz.²), 2nd, expanded and revised edition, Budapest: Akadémiai Kiadó, 2003 (online searchable version under development).
• aba in Nóra Ittzés, editor, A magyar nyelv nagyszótára [A Comprehensive Dictionary of the Hungarian Language] (Nszt.), Budapest: Akadémiai Kiadó, 2006–2031 (work in progress; published a–ez as of 2026).

• IPA^(key): /abaʔ/
• Rhymes: -abaʔ
• Hyphenation: a‧ba

From Proto-Malayic *aba, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *aba, from Proto-Austronesian *aba.

aba

1. father

   Aba aku ― My father

aba

1. smell

aba

1. with; and

   Jaba aba Jalir ― Jaba and Jalir

2. at; in

   Aba bilik iya ― He's in the room

• (Standard Indonesian) IPA^(key): /ˈaba/ [ˈa.ba]
• Rhymes: -aba
• Syllabification: a‧ba

Inherited from Malay aba, from Proto-Malayic *aba, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *aba, from Proto-Austronesian *aba. Doublet of abah. False cognate of Arabic أَب (ʔab, “father”), آباء (ʔābāʔ, “fathers”).

• abah

aba (plural aba-aba)

1. synonym of ayah (“father”)

Borrowed from Javanese ꦲꦧ (aba, “sign, sound; order, command; to order, command; spoken word; to say, to speak”). Doublet of abah.

• abah

aba (plural aba-aba)

1. signals in the form of knocking sounds on walls and so on which are usually heard before the death of a family member

From Marlasi

aba (plural aba-aba)

1. (dialect) cigarette stick

Borrowed from Manggarai [Term?]

aba

1. (dialect) to ask for approval from other people to hold or invite a competition

Borrowed from Lun Bawang [Term?]

aba

1. (dialect) to cook something that requires a large and long fire

• “aba”, in Kamus Besar Bahasa Indonesia [Great Dictionary of the Indonesian Language] (in Indonesian), Jakarta: Agency for Language Development and Cultivation – Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology of the Republic of Indonesia, 2016

• IPA^(key): /ˈabˠə/

aba

1. only used in ar aba

aba m sg

1. genitive singular of ab

• Ó Dónaill, Niall (1977), “aba”, in Foclóir Gaeilge–Béarla [Irish–English Dictionary], Dublin: An Gúm, →ISBN
• de Bhaldraithe, Tomás (1959), “aba”, in English-Irish Dictionary, An Gúm

Inherited from Proto-Arawa *aba-.

aba

1. (Banawá) fish

• 2007. The UCLA Phonetics Lab Archive. Los Angeles, CA: UCLA Department of Linguistics.

aba

1. Rōmaji transcription of あば

aba

1. romanization of ꦲꦧ

• IPA^(key): /ˈʔaba/ [ˈʔaː.bʌ] (“banana skin”)
  • Rhymes: -aba
• IPA^(key): /ʔaˈba/ [ʔʌˈba] (“act of carrying on the back”)
  • Rhymes: -a
• Syllabification: a‧ba

ába

1. banana skin
2. taro
3. honey

abá

1. act of carrying on the back, usually a child with a carrying blanket (eban)

• Morice Vanoverbergh (1933), “aba”, in A Dictionary of Lepanto Igorot or Kankanay. As it is spoken at Bauco (Linguistische Anthropos-Bibliothek; XII)‎^[10], Mödling bei Wien, St. Gabriel, Österreich: Verlag der Internationalen Zeitschrift „Anthropos“, →OCLC, page 1
• Allen, Larry (2021), “abá”, in Kankanaey – English Dictionary, Summer Institute of Linguistics
• Wallace, Judy (2018), “aba”, in Northern Kankanay – English Dictionary, Summer Institute of Linguistics
• Dalos D. Miguel (6 April 2012), “aba”, in “Kankanaey (Some) words spoken today and their English Translation”, in Philippine Languages @ Cordillera Administrative Region‎^[11] (blog; overall work in English), archived from the original on 6 August 2025

Borrowed from Middle Low German ebbe (“tide”).^[1] Compare English ebb and Dutch eb.

• IPA^(key): /ˈa.ba/
• Rhymes: -aba
• Syllabification: a‧ba

aba f

1. (regional, Hel Peninsula) ebb, the receding movement of the tide
2. (regional, Hel Peninsula) ebb tide
3. (regional, Hel Peninsula) tide, any periodic change in sea level

• Sychta, Bernard (1967), “aba”, in Słownik gwar kaszubskich [Dictionary of Kashubian dialects] (in Polish), volumes 1 (A – Ǵ), Wrocław: Ossolineum, page 1
• Jan Trepczyk (1994), “fala”, in Słownik polsko-kaszubski (in Kashubian), volumes 1–2
• Eùgeniusz Gòłąbk (2011), “fala”, in Słownik Polsko-Kaszubski / Słowôrz Pòlskò-Kaszëbsczi‎^[12]

Cognate with Latvian aba and Lithuanian aba.

• IPA^(key): [ˈaba]
• Hyphenation: a‧ba

aba

1. (archaic) or

• Nicole Nau (2011), A short grammar of Latgalian, München: LINCOM GmbH, →ISBN, page 74

aba

1. (archaic) just
2. (archaic) just now

• nupat
• tikko
• patlaban

aba

1. (archaic) or

• vai

aba

1. (archaic) both

• abi

aba m (4th declension, irregular gender, dative singular)

1. (Christianity, Judaism) Father; religious superior; in the Syriac, Coptic, and Ethiopic churches, a title given to the bishops, and by the bishops to the patriarch; a title given to Jewish scholars in the Talmudic period.

• abba

Cognate with Latvian and Latgalian aba, as well as modern Lithuanian arbà.

• IPA^(key): [ɐˈbɐ]
  • Rhymes: -ɐ
  • Syllabification: a‧bà
• IPA^(key): [ˈɐbɐ]
  • Rhymes: -ɐbɐ
  • Syllabification: à‧ba

abà or àba

1. (dialectal or archaic) or

• “aba”, in Lietuvių kalbos žodynas [Dictionary of the Lithuanian language], lkz.lt, 1941–2026

aba

1. (Western Lokono) one.

• ábą

From Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *aba, from Proto-Austronesian *aba.

aba

1. (dialectal) father

• aba in Malagasy dictionaries at malagasyword.org

• (Etymology 1, 2, and 5)
  • (Standard Literary, Standard Southern Peninsula) IPA^(key): [a.ba]

    • Audio (Malaysia):

      (file)

• (Etymology 3)
  • (Standard Southern Peninsula) IPA^(key): [a.bə]

    • Audio (Malaysia):

      (file)

  • (Standard Literary) IPA^(key): [a.ba]

    • Audio (Malaysia):

      (file)

• Rhymes: -abə, -aba
• Hyphenation: a‧ba
• (Etymology 4)
  • (Standard Southern Peninsula) IPA^(key): [a.bə da.bə]

    • Audio (Malaysia):

      (file)

  • (Standard Literary) IPA^(key): [a.ba da.ba]

    • Audio (Malaysia):

      (file)

From Proto-Malayic *aba, from Proto-Malayo-Chamic *aba, from Proto-Malayo-Sumbawan *aba, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *aba, from Proto-Austronesian *aba. Doublet of abah. False cognate of Arabic أَب (ʔab, “father”), آباء (ʔābāʔ, “fathers”).

aba (Jawi spelling اب)

1. alternative form of abah

• Indonesian: aba

From Arabic أَب (ʔab).

aba (Jawi spelling اب)

1. A father (male parent).

Clipping of haba.

aba (Jawi spelling اب)

1. alternative form of haba

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

aba-daba (Jawi spelling اب-داب)

1. A germ.

Borrowed from Indonesian aba, from Javanese ꦲꦧ (aba).

aba (Jawi spelling اب, also used in the form aba-aba)

1. (Indonesia) Command words used in military exercises.

• "aba" in Pusat Rujukan Persuratan Melayu (PRPM) [Malay Literary Reference Centre (PRPM)] (in Malay), Kuala Lumpur: Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka, 2017

Akin to Tagalog haba.

aba

1. long

Borrowed from English harbor.

• (phonetics) IPA^(key): [ɑbˠɑ]
• (phonemic) IPA^(key): /ɰæpˠæɰ/
• Bender phonemes: {habah}

aba

1. (nautical) harbor, anchorage, port

   Eaar rum̧ļo̧k juon tiim̧a in Amedka eo ilo aba.

   An American ship sank in the harbor.

aba (transitive abaiki) (intransitive)

1. (nautical) to make/create a harbor

   Raar abaiki arin āneo n̄an kien n̄e ad.

   They made a harbor on the lagoon side of the island for our government.

• Abo, Takaji; Bender Byron W.; Capelle, Alfred; DeBrum, Tony (2009–), “aba”, in Marshallese–English Online Dictionary‎^[13]
• Nik Willson (2014), Naan‎^[14], Majuro, Marshall Islands, page 825

Borrowed from Spanish haba (“bean; bump, nodule; equine palatitis”), from Latin faba (“bean”).

• IPA^(key): /ǎβa/

ǎba

1. equine palatitis

• ndodi

• Hernández Cruz, Luis; Victoria Torquemada, Moisés (2010), Diccionario del hñähñu (otomí) del Valle del Mezquital, estado de Hidalgo (Serie de vocabularios y diccionarios indígenas “Mariano Silva y Aceves”; 45)‎^[15] (in Spanish), second edition, Instituto Lingüístico de Verano, A.C., page 3

aba

1. genitive singular of ab

Inherited from Proto-Tupi-Guarani *rap, from Proto-Mawé-Guaraní *t͡sap, from Proto-Tupian *jap.^[1]

Cognate with Sateré-Mawé sap, Paraguayan Guarani ague.

• IPA^(key): /ˈa.β̞a/
• Rhymes: -aβa
• Hyphenation: a‧ba

aba (possessable, IIa class pluriform, absolute taba, R1 raba, R2 saba)

1. body hair
2. fur (hairy coat of various mammal species)
3. contour feather; plumage

   pykasuaba

   pigeon feathers

4. wool
5. woolen fabric

• When talking about birds, aba referred only to the body feathers; the flight feathers were called pepó.

• Antônio Lemos Barbosa (1956), Curso de tupi antigo: gramática, exercícios, textos [Course of Old Tupi: Grammar, Exercises, Texts]‎^[16] (in Portuguese), Rio de Janeiro: Livraria São José
• Navarro, Eduardo de Almeida (2013), “aba”, in Dicionário de tupi antigo: a língua indígena clássica do Brasil [Dictionary of Old Tupi: The Classical Indigenous Language of Brazil ] (overall work in Portuguese), São Paulo: Global, →ISBN, page 5, columns 1–2

• Hyphenation: a‧ba
• IPA^(key): /aˈba/, [aˈba]
• Rhymes: -a

abá

1. taro

From Latin alapa (“slap, smack”). Cognate with Galician aba.

• Audio (Brazil):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -abɐ
• Hyphenation: a‧ba

aba f (plural abas)

1. brim (of a hat)

   a aba do chapéu

   the brim of the hat

2. flap (hinged leaf of furniture)
3. bank (of a river)

   Synonym: margem

4. (computing) tab (navigational widget in a GUI)

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

aba

1. inflection of abar:
   1. third-person singular present indicative
   2. second-person singular imperative

• “aba”, in Dicionário Aulete Digital (in Portuguese), Rio de Janeiro: Lexikon Editora Digital, 2008–2026
• “aba” in Dicionário Aberto based on Novo Diccionário da Língua Portuguesa de Cândido de Figueiredo, 1913
• “aba”, in Michaelis Dicionário Brasileiro da Língua Portuguesa (in Portuguese), São Paulo: Editora Melhoramentos, 2015–2026, →ISBN
• “aba”, in Dicionário Priberam da Língua Portuguesa (in Portuguese), Lisbon: Priberam, 2008–2026

• аба (aba) — post-1930s Cyrillic spelling

• IPA^(key): /aˈba/
• Rhymes: -a
• Hyphenation: a‧bá

Borrowed from Ottoman Turkish عبا (abâ) (Turkish aba), from Arabic عَبَاءَة (ʕabāʔa).

aba f (plural abale)

1. (uncountable) thick woolen baize (usually white), from which country clothing is often made

   Synonyms: dimie, pănură

2. (countable) a garment made of the above

• țesătură

aba

1. expresses wonder or draws attention to something

• “aba”, in DEX online—Dicționare ale limbii române (Dictionaries of the Romanian language) (in Romanian), 2004–2026

Borrowed from Amdo Tibetan ཨ་ཕ (a pha, “father”).

• (Xunhua, Qinghai, Ili, Yining, Xinjiang) IPA^(key): /ɑbɑ/

aba

1. father

• Potanin, G.N. (1893), “aba”, in Тангутско-Тибетская окраина Китая и Центральная Монголия [Tangutsko-Tibetskaja okraina Kitaja i Centralʹnaja Mongolija] (in Russian)
• Poyarkov, Alexei; Ladygin, Vasiliy (1893), “Салары. Этнографический очерк [Salary. Etnografičeskij očerk, The Salars: An Ethnographic Sketch]”, in Этнографическое ОбозрѢніе: Императорскаго Общества Любителей Естествознанія, Антропологіи и Этнографіи [Etnografičeskoje ObozrĚnije: Imperatorskago Obščestva Ljubitelej Jestestvoznanija, Antropologii i Etnografii, Ethnographical Review: Imperial Society of Lovers of Natural History, Anthropology and Ethnography]‎^[17] (in Russian), Moscow: Publication of the Ethnographic Department, page 32
• Rockhill, William Woodville (1894), Diary of a journey through Mongolia and Tibet in 1891 and 1892, Washington: Smithsonian Institution, page 374
• Kakuk, S. (1962), “aba”, in “Un vocabulaire Salar”, in Acta Orientalia Academiae Scientiarum Hungaricae‎^[18], volume 14, number 2, Akadémiai Kiadó, →ISBN, page 175
• Tenishev, Edhem (1976), “aba”, in Stroj salárskovo jazyká [Grammar of Salar], Moscow: Nauka, page 279
• 林莲云 [Lin Lianyun] (1985), “aba”, in 撒拉语简志 [A Brief History of Salar]‎^[19], Beijing: 民族出版社: 琴書店, →OCLC, page 126
• Yakup, Abdurishid (2002), “aba”, in An Ili Salar Vocabulary: Introduction and a Provisional Salar-English Lexicon‎^[20], Tokyo: University of Tokyo, →ISBN, page 31
• Dwyer, Arienne M. (2007), “aba”, in Salar: A Study in Inner Asian Language Contact Processes: Part I: Phonology‎^[21], 1st edition, Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz Verlag, →ISBN, page 108
• Ma, Chengjun; Han, Lianye; Ma, Weisheng (December 2010), “aba”, in 米娜瓦尔·艾比布拉 [Minavar Abibra], editor, 撒维汉词典 [Sā-Wéi-Hàn cídiǎn, Salar-Uyghur-Chinese dictionary] (in Chinese), 1st edition, Beijing, →ISBN, page 1
• 马伟 [Ma Wei], 朝克 [Chaoke] (2014), “aba”, in 撒拉语366条会话读本 [Salar 366 Conversation Reader]‎^[22], 1^st edition, 社会科学文献出版社 [Social Science Literature Press], →ISBN, page 109

From Latin ava, feminine of avus.

aba f (plural abas)

1. grandmother

From Latin ala.

• ala

aba f (plural abas)

1. wing

• IPA^(key): /ˈab(b)a/

aba f (plural abi)

1. alternative form of abi (“bee”)

• Ugo Solinas (2016), “àbi”, in Vocabolario sassarese-italiano fraseologico ed etimologico, volume 1, Sestu: Domus de Janas, →ISBN, page 20
• Giosue Muzzo (1981), “àba”, in Vocabolario del dialetto sassarese, Chiarella Editore, →ISBN; republished, Sassari: Carlo Delfino editore, 2018, page 25

• ab

From Old Irish abb, from Latin abbās, from Ancient Greek ἀββᾶς (abbâs), from Aramaic אבא (’abbā, “father”).

• IPA^(key): /ˈapə/
• Hyphenation: a‧ba

aba m (genitive singular aba, plural abachan)

1. abbot

   An nì a nì an dara h-aba subhach, nì e dubhach an t-aba eile.

   What makes the one abbot glad makes the other abbot sad.

• abaid

• Edward Dwelly (1911), “aba”, in Faclair Gàidhlig gu Beurla le Dealbhan [The Illustrated Gaelic–English Dictionary], 10th edition, Edinburgh: Birlinn Limited, →ISBN
• MacLennan, Malcolm (1925), A Pronouncing and Etymological Dictionary of the Gaelic Language, Edinburgh: J. Grant, →OCLC
• Mark, Colin (2003), “aba”, in The Gaelic–English dictionary, London: Routledge, →ISBN, page 5

Borrowed from Ottoman Turkish عبا (abâ) (Turkish aba), from Arabic عَبَاءَة (ʕabāʔa).

aba f (Cyrillic spelling аба)

1. (regional) aba

• “aba”, in Hrvatski jezični portal [Croatian language portal] (in Serbo-Croatian), 2006–2026

• IPA^(key): /aba/, [ˈaba]
• Rhymes: -aba
• Hyphenation: a‧ba

aba f (genitive singular aby, declension pattern of žena)

1. aba, abaya

   Synonym: abája

• “aba”, in Slovníkový portál Jazykovedného ústavu Ľ. Štúra SAV [Dictionary portal of the Ľ. Štúr Institute of Linguistics, Slovak Academy of Science] (in Slovak), https://slovnik.juls.savba.sk, 2003–2026

From Proto-Bantu *-gàba.

-aba

1. to divide, to distribute

This noun needs an inflection-table template.

Either inherited from Latin apage (“go away”), from Ancient Greek άπαγε (ápage), or alternatively borrowed from Arabic اِبْعَد (ibʕad, dialectally also abʕad), imperative of بَعِدَ (baʕida, “to go away”), via Andalusian Arabic.^[1] As both words have the same meaning and could both easily have yielded Spanish aba, it is hardly possible to decide.

• IPA^(key): /ˈaba/ [ˈa.β̞a]
• Rhymes: -aba
• Syllabification: a‧ba
• Homophone: haba

¡aba!

1. caution!, watch out!

• “aba”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.8.1, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 15 December 2025

aba

1. romanization of 𒀊 (aba)

From Proto-Bantu *-gàba.

-ába

1. (transitive) to share
2. (transitive) to distribute

This verb needs an inflection-table template.

• (Standard Tagalog) IPA^(key): /ʔaˈbaʔ/ [ʔɐˈbaʔ]

• Audio:

  (file)

• Rhymes: -aʔ
• Syllabification: a‧ba

abâ (Baybayin spelling ᜀᜊ)

1. poor, indigent

   Synonyms: dukha, maralita, hirap, mahirap

   Tulungan natin ang mga abang pamilya.

   Let's help the poor families.

2. humble; ordinary

   Synonyms: karaniwan, pangkaraniwan

3. oppressed; abused

   Synonyms: api, inapi, api-apihan

4. unfortunate

   Synonym: kaawa-awa

5. mean; despicable

   Synonym: hamak

From Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *abá.

• (Standard Tagalog) IPA^(key): /ʔaˈba/ [ʔɐˈba]

• Audio:

  (file)

• Rhymes: -a
• Syllabification: a‧ba

abá (Baybayin spelling ᜀᜊ)

1. an exclamation of surprise, wonder, or admiration; wow

   Synonyms: naku, (Rizal) adyaw

   Aba! Bakit ngayon mo lang sinabi?

   Hey! How come you only said it now?

   Aba! Ikaw ang bahala.

   Well! Do as you please.

   Aba oo.

   But of course.

• ba

Borrowed from Spanish ave, from Latin avē (“hello, hail”). The senses “calling of attention” could possibly be borrowed from Spanish aba (“watch out”), either from Latin apage (“go away”), from Ancient Greek άπαγε (ápage), or from Arabic اِبْعَد.

• (Standard Tagalog) IPA^(key): /ʔaˈba/ [ʔɐˈba]

• Audio:

  (file)

• Rhymes: -a
• Syllabification: a‧ba

abá (Baybayin spelling ᜀᜊ)

1. hail!

   Aba Ginoong Maria!

   Hail Mary!; Ave Maria!

• Aba Ginoong Maria

abá (Baybayin spelling ᜀᜊ)

1. act of greeting or calling the attention of someone

   Synonyms: bati, pagbati

2. reminder or call of attention for someone about something

   Synonyms: banggit, ino, pagbanggit, pag-ino

• “aba”, in Pambansang Diksiyonaryo | Diksiyonaryo.ph, 2018
• Blust, Robert; Trussel, Stephen; et al. (2023) “*abá”, in the CLDF dataset from The Austronesian Comparative Dictionary (2010–), →DOI
• Cuadrado Muñiz, Adolfo (1972), Hispanismos en el tagalo: diccionario de vocablos de origen español vigentes en esta lengua filipina, Madrid: Oficina de Educación Iberoamericana, page 1

• aab

aba

1. Latin spelling of аба (aba)

• IPA^(key): [ˈa.ba]

aba

1. father

   Synonym: baba

• Rika Hayami-Allen (2001), A descriptive study of the language of Ternate, the northern Moluccas, Indonesia, University of Pittsburgh

• IPA^(key): /ɑbɑ/

From Proto-Turkic *apa (“mother, elder sister, aunt”).

aba (definite accusative abayı, plural abalar)

1. (dialectal) elder sister
2. (dialectal) mother

From Arabic عَبَاءَة (ʕabāʔa).

aba (definite accusative abayı, plural abalar)

1. felt (a non-woven cloth that is produced by matting, condensing and pressing woollen fibres)

• aba güreşi

From Ottoman Turkish آبا (aba), from Arabic آباء (ʔābāʔ).

• IPA^(key): /ɑːbɑː/

aba

1. (archaic) fathers
2. (archaic) ancestors, forefathers
3. (archaic) Christian monks

aba

1. dative singular of ab

• “aba”, in Turkish dictionaries, Türk Dil Kurumu

aba f (plural abe) (Belluno)

1. alternative form of acua

• “aba”, in el Galepin – www.elgalepin.com

• IPA^(key): /apa/

aba

1. (childish) grandmother

aba

1. (Loli) fat
2. (Loli) mouth

• Lobu Ori, S,Pd, M.Pd (2010), “aba”, in Kamus Bahasa Lolina [Dictionary of the Loli Language] (in Indonesian), Waikabubak: Kepala Dinas Kebudayaan dan Pariwisata, Kabupaten Sumba Barat

From Mandarin 阿爸 (ābà).

• IPA^(key): [apa]

aba

1. father

   Synonym: ha

   Coordinate terms: ana, ma

• Erika Sandman (2016), A Grammar of Wutun‎^[23], University of Helsinki (PhD), →ISBN

From Proto-Bantu *-gàba.

-aba

1. (transitive) to share
2. (transitive) to distribute

This verb needs an inflection-table template.

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

• IPA^(key): [âːɓa]

âba

1. these; class 2 proximal demonstrative.

• IPA^(key): /à.bá/

àbá

1. idea, suggestion

• IPA^(key): /ā.bà/

abà

1. barn, village

   Synonym: ahéré

   Synonym: abúlé

From à- (“nominalizing prefix”) +‎ ba (“to brood, to incubate”)

• IPA^(key): /à.bā/

àba

1. incubation

• IPA^(key): /ā.bá/

abá

1. type of mat

   Synonym: ẹní

• IPA^(key): /à.bá/

àbá

1. (Ekiti) father

   Synonyms: bàbá, aba

   Antonyms: iye, eye

2. (Ekiti) a term of familiarity or respect for an older man or male relative

   Synonyms: bàbá, aba

• IPA^(key): /ʔaba/

aba

1. father
2. paternal uncle (among the wegi clan); maternal uncle (sometimes)

• Sense 2 refers to blood relations only
• Most often used as a form of address, rather than a noun proper.

• kisir

• Beria-English English-Beria Dictionary [provisional] ADESK, Iriba, Kobe Department, Chad

aba f

1. felt (a non-woven cloth that is produced by matting, condensing and pressing woollen fibres)

From Proto-Bantu *-gàba.

-aba

1. (transitive) to divide, to apportion, to distribute
2. (transitive) to share

• -abela (applicative)
• -abisa (causative)
• -abisisa (intensive)
• -abeka (neuter-passive)
• -abiwa (passive)
• -abana (reciprocal)
• umabi
• umabo

• C. M. Doke; B. W. Vilakazi (1972), “aɓa”, in Zulu-English Dictionary, →ISBN: “aɓa (6.3)”