alpha

UK/ˈæl.fə/

More pronunciations (1)Fewer pronunciations

India/ˈæːl.fɑː/

alpha noun: the name of the first letter of the Greek alphabet (Α, α), followed by beta. In the Latin alphabet it is the predecessor to A. Also the clipping of alphabet.

Image: Mrmw, Saltmarsh, Grifomaniacs, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Noun (1)

alpha (countable and uncountable, plural alphas)

The name of the first letter of the Greek alphabet (Α, α), followed by beta. In the Latin alphabet it is the predecessor to A.
Latin alpha: the Latin letter Ɑ (minuscule: ɑ).
The name of the symbols Α and α used in science and mathematics, often interchangeable with the symbols when used as a prefix.
- I will attempt to make an alpha particle ("α-particle") with the Large Hadron Collider.
The return of a given asset or portfolio adjusted for systematic risk.
- Similarly, alphas are 2.33% larger than that of the equivalent monthly alphas using compounded returns while no changes can be found using arithmetic returns.2001, Cheng-Few Lee, editor, Advances in Investment Analysis and Portfolio Management, volume 8, Elsevier, →ISBN, page 174
- To investment professionals, “alpha” is the return over and above the market return. If in a given year the S. & P. 500 returns fifteen per cent and an equity-fund manager generates a return of twenty per cent, his alpha is five per cent.2011 July 18, John Cassidy, “Mastering the Machine”, in The New Yorker, →ISSN
A person, especially a male, who is dominant, successful and attractive; (see alpha male).
- Being a beta male in a species with alphas doesn't mean you have to sit out the mating game.2008, Faye Flam, The Score: How the Quest for Sex Has Shaped the Modern Man, Avery, published 2008, →ISBN
- I'm still turned on by alpha males. I think there are only a couple of other men that turn me on . . . ones that are clearly not alphas.2008, Mitzi Szereto, editor, The New Black Lace Book of Women's Sexual Fantasies, Black Lace, →ISBN, page 38
The first versions of a program, usually only available to the developer, and only tested by the developer.
- We will assume you got the .tgz version—later 2.x series versions such as 2.5.2 or 2.6.0 should be okay, provided they are production releases (not alphas, betas, or release candidates).2007, Mark Summerfield, Rapid GUI Programming with Python and Qt: The Definitive Guide to PyQt Programming, Pearson Education, →ISBN
An angle of attack.
The level of translucency of a color, as determined by the alpha channel.
The significance level of a statistical test; the alpha level.
(slang) In omegaverse fiction, a person of a dominant secondary sex driven by biology, magic, or other means to bond with an omega, with males of this type often having canine-like genitalia.
- Sometimes the alphas and omegas are rare, sometimes they are only males, sometimes they have altered sex organs.2013, Kristina Busse, “Pon Farr, Mpreg, Bonds, and the Rise of the Omegaverse”, in Anne Jamison, editor, Fic: Why Fanfiction Is Taking Over the World, page 317
- Sherlock realizes that John, despite being an alpha, sees and loves Sherlock for who he is, "a brilliant, mad, nutter of a man," instead of only wanting him for his reproductive functions, his ability to become pregnant.2017, Marianne Gunderson, "What is an omega? Rewriting sex and gender in omegaverse fanfiction", thesis submitted to the University of Oslo, page 11

Adjective

alpha (not comparable)

Designates the first in an order of precedence.
- I am the alpha male.
(object or action) Exhibiting characteristics of the alpha male/female archetype.
- And thank you. Seriously. I'll call you later.
  You better. I'm feeling pretty alpha now.
  Yes, you are.2015, Life Is Strange, Square Enix
Designates some bright star, usually the brightest star, of a constellation.
- When interstellar travel becomes feasible, I plan to visit Alpha Centauri.

Proper noun capitalized: Alpha

Alpha

A ghost town in California, United States (USA).
A village in Illinois, United States.
A village in Michigan, United States.
A city and village in Minnesota, United States.
A borough of New Jersey, United States.
A town in Queensland, Australia.
Former name of the International Space Station.
A RISC CPU instruction set architecture developed and marketed by Digital Equipment Corporation (then later by Compaq and then Hewlett-Packard) from 1992 until 2004.

Noun (2) capitalized: Alpha

Alpha (plural Alphas)

Alternative letter-case form of alpha.
A member of Generation Alpha.
- They are being partially replaced by a new generation – the Alphas, which cover children aged nine or under and account for 12 per cent of all Australians.2022 June 28, Shane Wright, Carla Jaeger, “Gen Xers squeezed by their parents, children”, in The Sydney Morning Herald
- And if, as Twenge argues, the proliferation of internet-enabled devices is the defining factor in Gen Z’s profile — and the main root of its problems — the Alphas, or Polars, remain an open question.2023 April 20, Casey Schwartz, “Jean Twenge is ready to make you defend your generation again”, in The Washington Post
Synonyms:

Gen Alpha, Generation Alpha

Also used as

alpha is also the clipping of alphabet.

alpha is also the ellipsis of alpha layer.

alpha is also the alternative letter-case form of Alpha.

alpha is also the clipping of alphabetical.

alpha meaning in Hindi, Marathi, Urdu and Bengali

alpha in Hindi

name of the letter Α, α: अल्फ़ा alfā

alpha in Marathi

name of the letter Α, α: आल्फा ālphā

alpha in Urdu

name of the letter Α, α: الف alif, الفا alfā

alpha in Bengali

আলফা, আল্ফা

More languagesFewer languages

alpha in Malayalam: ആൽഫ, ആൽഫാ, അൽഫ
alpha in Kannada: ಆಲ್ಫಾ, ಅಲ್ಫಾ, ಆಲ್ಫ
alpha in Punjabi: ਅਲਫ਼ਾ, ਐਲਫ਼ਾ
alpha in Gujarati: આલ્ફા, અલ્ફા
alpha in Odia: ଆଲ୍ଫା ālphā
alpha in Nepali: अल्फा, आल्फा
alpha in Tagalog: alpa
alpha in Arabic: أَلْفَا ʔalfā
alpha in Malay: alfa
alpha in Persian: آلفا âlfâ
alpha in Thai: แอลฟา ɛɛl-fâa

Examples of alpha in a sentence

When alpha male podcasters and bloggers boast that “Men’s Peak SMV is Age 37”, I agree.
And beta fish can't be beta fish if they are fighting to be alpha fish.
The Woodland pack gathered close, shouting encouragement to their alpha prime.

All 40 example sentences with alpha

Synonyms of alpha

Forms of alpha

plural	alphas
plural	Alphas

Plural of alpha: alphas

Origin of alpha

From the Ancient Greek ἄλφα (álpha), the first letter of the Greek alphabet, from the Phoenician 𐤀 (ʾ, “aleph”). Doublet of alif and aleph.

Words formed from alpha

Phrases with alpha

90 more phrasesFewer phrases

Questions about alpha

What does alpha mean?: Alpha means the name of the first letter of the Greek alphabet (Α, α), followed by beta. In the Latin alphabet it is the predecessor to A.
What is alpha in Hindi?: Alpha in Hindi is अल्फ़ा (alfā). See Alpha meaning in Hindi.
What part of speech is alpha?: Alpha can be a noun, an adjective or a proper noun.
How do you pronounce alpha?: Alpha is pronounced /ˈæl.fə/ (UK).
What is the plural of alpha?: The plural of alpha is alphas.

Words near alpha in the dictionary

Adapted from Wiktionary: alpha (page history and authors); Alpha (page history and authors); alpha (Bengali, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); alpha (Malayalam, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); alpha (Kannada, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); alpha (Punjabi, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); alpha (Gujarati, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); alpha (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.

Last updated: 2026-09-02

Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: en-us-alpha.ogg, En-in-alpha.oga.

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