Word.ws English Dictionary

alf

/ælf/

alf noun: a supernatural being similar to an elf; one of the Dǫkkálfar or Ljósalfar.

Noun (1)

alf (plural alfs or alfar)

  1. (Norse) A supernatural being similar to an elf; one of the Dǫkkálfar or Ljósalfar.
    • As the Scandinavians were at that time still worshippers of Thor and Odin, the belief in Alfs and Dwarfs accompanied them to their new abodes, and there, as elsewhere, survived the introduction of Christianity.1828, Thomas Keightley, The Fairy Mythology, volume I, London: William Harrison Ainsworth, page 248
    • [T]he charm suggests rather that the Ases had sunk to a level where they could be counted together with witches and lesser wights, than that the alfs were seen as godly beings at the time the charm was composed.2023, Kveldulf Gundarsson, Elves, Wights & Trolls, The Three Little Sisters, page 83

Proper noun (1) capitalized: ALF

ALF

  1. (abbreviation, initialism) Initialism of Animal Liberation Front (name used by animal rights activists engaging in direct action).
  2. (abbreviation, initialism) Initialism of automatic letter facing: mechanical postal system introduced in the UK in 1957 to align the stamps to the correct position for the franking machine.
  3. (abbreviation, initialism) Initialism of assisted living facility.

Proper noun (2) capitalized: Alf

Alf

  1. A diminutive of the male given names Alfred and Alfonso, from the Germanic languages.

Noun (2) capitalized: Alf

Alf (plural Alfs)

  1. (Australia, derogatory, slang) An uncultured Australian.
    • Martin Sharp once described Sydney's western suburbs to me hazily as 'where the Alfs live'.1973, Australia. Parliament. Senate. Standing Committee on Education, Science and the Arts, Reference, Broadcasting and Television: Official Hansard Report (page 1076)
    • Oz savaged suburbia as a wasteland of consumerism and conformity, peopled with 'Alfs' […]2009, Michelle Arrow, Friday on Our Minds: Popular Culture in Australia Since 1945, page 96

alf meaning in Hindi, Tamil, Marathi and Urdu

alf in Hindi

ए. एल. एफ, अल्फ, ए. एल. एफ़

alf in Tamil

ஆல்ஃப், அல்ஃப்

alf in Marathi

अल्फ, ए. एल. एफ

alf in Urdu

آلف
More languagesFewer languages
alf in Bengali
এ. এল. এফ, আলফ
alf in Telugu
ఆల్ఫ్, అల్ఫ్
alf in Malayalam
ആൽ. എഫ്
alf in Kannada
ಆಲ್ಫ್, ಅಲ್ಫ್
alf in Punjabi
ਏ. ਐੱਲ. ਐੱਫ
alf in Gujarati
એ. એલ. એફ, અલ્ફ
alf in Odia
ଆଲ୍ଫ୍, ଅଲ୍ଫ୍, ଆଲ୍ଫ
alf in Nepali
अल्फ

Forms of alf

pluralalfs
pluralalfar
pluralAlfs

Origin of alf

From Danish and Swedish alf, from Old Norse alfr; see also Dutch alf. Doublet of elf, awf, and oaf.

Words that rhyme with alf

Questions about alf

What does alf mean?
Alf means a supernatural being similar to an elf; one of the Dǫkkálfar or Ljósalfar.
What is alf in Hindi?
Alf in Hindi is ए. एल. एफ, अल्फ, ए. एल. एफ़. See Alf meaning in Hindi.
What part of speech is alf?
Alf can be a noun or a proper noun.
How do you pronounce alf?
Alf is pronounced /ælf/.
What is the plural of alf?
The plural of alf is alfs.

Words near alf in the dictionary

  1. aleyrodids
  2. Aleys
  3. Aleysky
  4. Alezzandrini syndrome
  5. Aleșd
  6. alf
  7. alfa
  8. alfa grass
  9. alfabeto
  10. alfabetto
  11. alfacalcidol

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: alf (page history and authors); ALF (page history and authors); Alf (page history and authors); alf (Hindi, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); alf (Tamil, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); alf (Marathi, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); alf (Urdu, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); alf (Bengali, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); alf (Telugu, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); alf (Malayalam, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); alf (Kannada, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); alf (Punjabi, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); alf (Gujarati, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); alf (Odia, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); alf (Nepali, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: LL-Q1860 (eng)-Vealhurl-Alf.wav.

Cite this entry: “alf.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/alf. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.