Definify.com

Webster 1913 Edition

At

At

,
p
rep.
[AS.
æt
; akin to OHG.
az
, Goth., OS., & Icel.
at
, Sw.
åt
, Dan. & L.
ad
.]
Primarily, this word expresses the relations of presence, nearness in place or time, or direction toward;
as,
at
the ninth hour;
at
the house; to aim
at
a mark.
It is less definite than in or on;
at
the house may be in or near the house. From this original import are derived all the various uses of
at
.
It expresses: -
1.
A relation of proximity to, or of presence in or on, something;
as,
at
the door;
at
your shop;
at
home;
at
school;
at
hand;
at
sea and on land.
2.
The relation of some state or condition;
as,
at
war;
at
peace;
at
ease;
at
your service;
at
fault;
at
liberty;
at
risk;
at
disadvantage.
3.
The relation of some employment or action; occupied with;
as,
at
engraving;
at
husbandry;
at
play;
at
work;
at
meat (eating); except
at
puns.
4.
The relation of a point or position in a series, or of degree, rate, or value;
as, with the thermometer
at
80°; goods sold
at
a cheap price; a country estimated
at
10,000 square miles; life is short
at
the longest.
5.
The relations of time, age, or order;
as,
at
ten o’clock;
at
twenty-one;
at
once;
at
first.
6.
The relations of source, occasion, reason, consequence, or effect;
as,
at
the sight;
at
this news; merry
at
anything;
at
this declaration;
at
his command; to demand, require, receive, deserve, endure
at
your hands.
7.
Relation of direction toward an object or end;
as, look
at
it; to point
at
one; to aim
at
a mark; to throw, strike, shoot, wink, mock, laugh
at
any one.
At all
,
At home
,
At large
,
At last
,
At length
,
At once
, etc.
See under
All
,
Home
,
Large
,
Last
(phrase and syn.),
Length
,
Once
, etc.
–
At it
,
busily or actively engaged.
–
At least
.
See
Least
and
However
.
–
At one
.
See
At one
, in the Vocabulary.
Syn. –
In
,
At
.
When reference to the interior of any place is made prominent in is used. It is used before the names of countries and cities (esp. large cities); as, we live in America, in New York, in the South. At is commonly employed before names of houses, institutions, villages, and small places; as, Milton was educated at Christ's College; money taken in at the Customhouse; I saw him at the jeweler's; we live at Beachville. At may be used before the name of a city when it is regarded as a mere point of locality. “An English king was crowned at Paris.”
Macaulay.
“Jean Jacques Rousseau was born at Geneva, June, 28, 1712.”
J. Morley.
In regard to time, we say at the hour, on the day, in the year; as, at 9 o'clock, on the morning of July 5th, in the year 1775.

Webster 1828 Edition

At

AT

, prep. [L. ad. At, ad and to, if not radically the same word often coincide in signification; Heb to come, to a approach. Hence it primarily denotes presence, meeting, nearness, direction towards.]
In general, at denotes nearness, or presents; as at the ninth hour, at the house; but it is less definite than in or on; at the house, may be in or near the house. It denotes also towards, versus; as, to aim an arrow at a mark.
From this original import are derived all the various uses of at. At the sight, is with, present, or coming the sight; at this news, present the news, on or with the approach or arrival of this news. At peace, at war, in a state of peace or war, peace or war, in a state of peace or war, peace or war existing, being present; at ease, at play, at a loss, &c. convey the like idea. At arms, furnished with arms, bearing arms present with arms; at hand, within reach of the hand, and therefore near; at my cost, with my cost; at his suit, by or with his suit; at this declaration, he rose from his seat, that is present, or coming this declaration; whence results the idea in consequence of it. At his command, is either under his command, that is, literally, coming or being come his command, in the power of, or in consequence of it. He is good at engraving, at husbandry; that is, in performing that business. He deserves well at our hands; that is, from us. The peculiar phrases in which this word occurs, with appropriate significations, are numerous. At first, at last, at least, at best, at the worst, at the highest or lowest, are phrases in which some noun is implied; as, at the first time or beginning; at the last time, or point of time; at the least or best degree, &c.; all denoting an extreme point or superlative degree. At all, is in any manner or degree.
At is sometimes used for to, or towards, noting progression or direction; as, he aims at perfection; he makes or runs at him, or points at him. In this phrase, he longs to be at him, at has its general sense of approaching, or present, or with, in contest or attack.

Definition 2024

At

At

See also: Appendix:Variations of "at"

Translingual

Symbol

At

  1. (chemistry) Symbol for astatine.

at

at

See also: Appendix:Variations of "at"

English

Pronunciation

  • (stressed) enPR: ăt, IPA(key): /æt/
    • Rhymes: -æt
    • Homophone: @
  • (unstressed) IPA(key): /ət/
    • Homophone: it (unstressed; only in some accents)

Preposition

at

  1. In or very near a particular place.
    at that precise position;  at Jim’s house‎
    • 1908, W[illiam] B[lair] M[orton] Ferguson, Zollenstein, New York, N.Y.: D. Appleton & Company, OCLC 29686887 , chapter IV:
      “My Continental prominence is improving,” I commented dryly. ¶ Von Lindowe cut at a furze bush with his silver-mounted rattan. ¶ “Quite so,” he said as dryly, his hand at his mustache. “I may say if your intentions were known your life would not be worth a curse.”
    • 1992, Rudolf M. Schuster, The Hepaticae and Anthocerotae of North America: East of the Hundredth Meridian, volume V, page 4
      (b) sporophyte with foot reduced, the entire sporophyte enveloped by the calyptra, which is ± stipitate at the base.
  2. (indicating time) Indicating occurrence in an instant of time or a period of time relatively short in context or from the speaker's perspective.
    at six o’clock;  at closing time;  at night.‎
    • 1838, The Family Magazine
      Lafayette was major-general in the American army at the age of 18 […]
    • 2012 April 19, Josh Halliday, “Free speech haven or lawless cesspool – can the internet be civilised?”, in the Guardian:
      Other global taboos, such as sex and suicide, manifest themselves widely online, with websites offering suicide guides and Hot XXX Action seconds away at the click of a button. The UK government will come under pressure to block access to pornographic websites this year when a committee of MPs publishes its report on protecting children online.
  3. In the direction of (often in an unfocused or uncaring manner).
    He threw the ball at me.  He shouted at her.‎
    • 1908, W[illiam] B[lair] M[orton] Ferguson, Zollenstein, New York, N.Y.: D. Appleton & Company, OCLC 29686887 , chapter IV:
      “My Continental prominence is improving,” I commented dryly. ¶ Von Lindowe cut at a furze bush with his silver-mounted rattan. ¶ “Quite so,” he said as dryly, his hand at his mustache. “I may say if your intentions were known your life would not be worth a curse.”
  4. Occupied in (activity).
    men at work‎
  5. Indicates a position on a scale or in a series.
    Sell at 90.  Tiger finished the round at tenth, seven strokes behind the leaders.  I'm offering it—just to select customers—at cost.‎
  6. Because of.
    to laugh at a joke‎
  7. Holding a given speed or rate.
    It is growing at the rate of 3% a year.  Cruising along at fifty miles per hour.‎
  8. In a state of.
    She is at sixes and sevens with him.  They are at loggerheads over how best to tackle the fiscal cliff.  The city was at the mercy of the occupying forces.‎
  9. (Ireland, stressed pronunciation) bothering, irritating, causing discomfort to
    • 1995 Keith Wood, quoted in David Hughes, "Wood odds-on to take one against the head", in The Independent (London) 18 January:
      I think `Jesus, my back is at me'. Then I get the ball. Off you go for 10 yards and you don't feel a thing. Then you stop and think: `Jesus, it's at me again'[.]
    • 2014 Marian Keyes "Antarctic Diary - Part 2" personal website (January 2014):
      He seems to be saying. “Ah, go on, you’re making the other lads feel bad.” But the 4th fella says, “No. Don’t be ‘at’ me. I’m just not in the form right now, I’ll stay where I am, thanks.”
  10. (used for skills or areas of knowledge) On the subject of; regarding.
    She studied at her chemistry notes.
    He slipped at marksmanship over his extended vacation.
Usage notes
  • He threw the ball to me — (so I could catch it).
  • He threw the ball at me — (trying to hit me with it).
  • He talked to her — (conversationally).
  • He shouted at her — (aggressively).
Translations

Noun

at ‎(plural ats)

  1. The at sign (@).
Translations

Etymology 2

Noun

at ‎(plural ats or at)

  1. Alternative form of att (Laos currency unit)

Statistics

Most common English words before 1923: you · not · be · #20: at · by · on · her

Anagrams

Azeri

Etymology

From Old Turkic 𐱃 ‎(at), from Proto-Turkic *at, *ăt ‎(“horse”).

Noun

Other scripts
Cyrillic ат
Roman at
Perso-Arabic آت

at ‎(definite accusative atı, plural atlar)

  1. horse

Declension

Chuukese

Noun

at

  1. boy

Danish

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /at/, [æd̥], /a/, [æ]

Conjunction

at

  1. that

Particle

at

  1. to (infinitive-marker)
    Det er menneskeligt at fejle.
    To err is human.

Dutch

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ɑt/
  • Rhymes: -ɑt

Verb

at

  1. singular past indicative of eten
  2. first-, second- and third-person singular present indicative of atten
  3. imperative of atten

Faroese

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ɛaːʰt/
  • Rhymes: -ɛaːʰt
  • Homophone: æt

Etymology 1

From Old Norse at.

Preposition

at

  1. (with dative) at, towards, to

Etymology 2

From Old Norse at ‎(“that”), from Proto-Germanic *þat ‎(“that”). Cognate with Middle English at ‎(“that”, conjunction and relative pronoun), Scots at ‎(“that”, conjunction and relative pronoun). More at that.

Conjunction

at

  1. that

Etymology 3

From Old Norse at ‎(“at, to”), from Proto-Germanic *at ‎(“at, to”). More at at.

Particle

at

  1. to (A particle used to mark the following verb as an infinitive.)
    At lyfta. (To lift)

Friulian

Etymology

From Latin actus; cf. Italian atto.

Noun

at m ‎(plural ats)

  1. act, action, deed

Related terms

Gothic

Romanization

at

  1. Romanization of 𐌰𐍄

Icelandic

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /aːt/
  • Rhymes: -aːt

Noun

at n ‎(genitive singular ats, nominative plural öt)

  1. fight

Declension

Irish

Pronunciation

  • (Munster, Aran) IPA(key): /ɑt̪ˠ/
  • (Connemara, Mayo, Ulster) IPA(key): /at̪ˠ/

Etymology 1

From Old Irish att ‎(“swelling, protuberance, tumour”).

Noun

at m ‎(genitive singular as substantive ait, genitive as verbal noun ata, nominative plural atanna)

  1. swelling
    • 1899, Franz Nikolaus Finck, Die araner mundart, Marburg: Elwert’sche Verlagsbuchhandlung, vol. II, p. 11:
      tā at ə l̄āv m inīnə.
      conventional orthography: Tá at i lámh m’iníne.
      My daughter has a swelling on her hand.
    • 1899, Franz Nikolaus Finck, Die araner mundart, Marburg: Elwert’sche Verlagsbuchhandlung, vol. II, p. 11:
      tā šȧxt n-at i n-ə wunāl.
      conventional orthography: Tá seacht n-at ina mhuineál.
      He has seven swellings on his neck.
    • 1899, Franz Nikolaus Finck, Die araner mundart, Marburg: Elwert’sche Verlagsbuchhandlung, vol. II, p. 11:
      kiŕ də lāv ə n̄-isḱə leš n̥ t-at ə wȳlū.
      conventional orthography: Cuir do lámh in uisce leis an t-at a maolú.
      Put your hand in water to reduce the swelling.
  2. verbal noun of at
Declension

Etymology 2

From Old Irish attaid ‎(“swells, dilates, increases”, verb), from att ‎(“swelling, protuberance, tumour”).

Verb

at ‎(present analytic atann, future analytic atfaidh, verbal noun at, past participle ata)

  1. (intransitive) swell
    • 1899, Franz Nikolaus Finck, Die araner mundart, Marburg: Elwert’sche Verlagsbuchhandlung, vol. II, p. 11:
      tā ə h-ēdn̥ atī.
      conventional orthography: Tá a héadan ataithe.
      Her face is swollen.
    • 1899, Franz Nikolaus Finck, Die araner mundart, Marburg: Elwert’sche Verlagsbuchhandlung, vol. II, p. 11:
      tā mə lāv atī.
      conventional orthography: Tá mo lámh ataithe.
      My hand is swollen.
  2. (intransitive) bloat
  3. (intransitive, of sea) heave
Conjugation
  • Alternative past participle: ataithe
Synonyms

Mutation

Irish mutation
Radical Eclipsis with h-prothesis with t-prothesis
at n-at hat t-at
Note: Some of these forms may be hypothetical. Not every
possible mutated form of every word actually occurs.

References

  • “att” in Dictionary of the Irish Language, Royal Irish Academy, 1913–76.
  • “attaid” in Dictionary of the Irish Language, Royal Irish Academy, 1913–76.
  • “at” in Foclóir Gaeḋilge agus Béarla, Irish Texts Society, 1927, by Patrick S. Dinneen.
  • “at” in Foclóir Gaeḋilge agus Béarla, Irish Texts Society, 1927, by Patrick S. Dinneen.
  • "at" in Foclóir Gaeilge-Béarla, An Gúm, 1977, by Niall Ó Dónaill.

Ladin

Etymology

From Latin actus.

Noun

at m ‎(plural ac)

  1. act
  2. action
  3. work

Latin

Conjunction

at

  1. but, yet
  2. whereas

Synonyms

Derived terms

References

Livonian

Alternative forms

Verb

at

  1. 3rd person plural present indicative form of vȱlda

Norwegian Bokmål

Etymology

From Old Norse at. Cognate with Danish at and Swedish att.

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /at/, [ɑt]

Conjunction

at

  1. that

References

“at” in The Bokmål Dictionary.

Norwegian Nynorsk

Conjunction

at

  1. that

References

“at” in The Nynorsk Dictionary.

Old Irish

Alternative forms

  • (second-person singular): it
  • (third-person plural relative): ata

Pronunciation

  • (second-person singular): IPA(key): /at/
  • (third-person plural relative): IPA(key): /ad/

Verb

at

  1. second-person singular present indicative of is
  2. third-person plural present indicative relative of is

Old Norse

Etymology 1

From Proto-Germanic *atǭ. Related to Old Norse etja.

Noun

at n (genitive ats, plural ǫt)

  1. conflict, fight, battle
Declension
Descendants
  • Icelandic: at

Etymology 2

From Proto-Germanic *þat ‎(“that”). Cognate with Old English þæt, Gothic 𐌸𐌰𐍄𐌰 ‎(þata).

Conjunction

at

  1. that
  2. since, because, as
Descendants
  • Faroese: at
  • Icelandic: að

Etymology 3

From Proto-Germanic *at ‎(“at, to”). Cognate with Old English æt, Old Frisian et, Old Saxon at, Old High German az, Gothic 𐌰𐍄 ‎(at).

Particle

at

  1. to (infinitive particle)
Descendants
  • Faroese: at
  • Icelandic: að

Preposition

at

  1. at, to
Descendants
  • Faroese: at
  • Icelandic: að

References

Pipil

Etymology

From Proto-Nahuan *ātla, from Proto-Uto-Aztecan *paha or *pahi. Cognate to Classical Nahuatl ātl ‎(“water”).

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /aːt/

Noun

āt (plural ajāt)

  1. water
    Shikuni chiupi at‎
    Drink some water

Scots

Preposition

at

  1. at

Scottish Gaelic

Etymology 1

From Old Irish att.

Noun

at m

  1. swelling, tumour
  2. protuberance, prominence
Derived terms

Etymology 2

From Old Irish attaid ‎(“swells, dilates, increases”, verb), from att ‎(“swelling, protuberance, tumour”).

Verb

at ‎(past dh'at, future ataidh, verbal noun at or atadh, past participle athte)

  1. swell, fester, puff up, become tumid

References

  • Faclair Gàidhlig Dwelly Air Loidhne, Dwelly, Edward (1911), Faclair Gàidhlig gu Beurla le Dealbhan/The Illustrated [Scottish] Gaelic-English Dictionary (10th ed.), Edinburgh: Birlinn Limited, ISBN 0 901771 92 9
  • “att” in Dictionary of the Irish Language, Royal Irish Academy, 1913–76.
  • “attaid” in Dictionary of the Irish Language, Royal Irish Academy, 1913–76.

Selaru

Etymology

From Proto-Central-Eastern Malayo-Polynesian *əpat, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *əpat, from Proto-Austronesian *Səpat.

Numeral

at

  1. (cardinal) four

Serbo-Croatian

Etymology

Borrowing from Ottoman Turkish آت ‎(at).

Noun

at m ‎(Cyrillic spelling ат)

  1. steed
  2. Arabian (horse)

Declension

Derived terms

  • atkinja
  • atlija
  • atmejdan
  • atski

Simeulue

Etymology

From Proto-Western Malayo-Polynesian *əpat, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *əpat, from Proto-Austronesian *Səpat.

Numeral

at

  1. (cardinal) four

Tagalog

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /at/

Conjunction

at

  1. and

Synonyms

See also

  • at saka
  • t'saka

Torres Strait Creole

Etymology

From English heart.

Noun

at

  1. heart

Turkish

Etymology

From Old Turkic 𐱃 ‎(at), from Proto-Turkic *at, *ăt ‎(“horse”).

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ät̪/

Noun

at ‎(definite accusative atı, plural atlar)

  1. (chess) knight
  2. (zoology) horse

Declension

possessive forms of at
benim (my) singular (tekil) plural (çoğul)
nominative (yalın) atım atlarım
definite accusative (belirtme) atımı atlarımı
dative (yönelme) atıma atlarıma
locative (bulunma) atımda atlarımda
ablative (çıkma) atımdan atlarımdan
genitive (tamlayan) atımın atlarımın
senin (your) singular (tekil) plural (çoğul)
nominative (yalın) atın atların
definite accusative (belirtme) atını atlarını
dative (yönelme) atına atlarına
locative (bulunma) atında atlarında
ablative (çıkma) atından atlarından
genitive (tamlayan) atının atlarının
onun (her/his/its) singular (tekil) plural (çoğul)
nominative (yalın) atı atları
definite accusative (belirtme) atını atlarını
dative (yönelme) atına atlarına
locative (bulunma) atında atlarında
ablative (çıkma) atından atlarından
genitive (tamlayan) atının atlarının
bizim (our) singular (tekil) plural (çoğul)
nominative (yalın) atımız atlarımız
definite accusative (belirtme) atımızı atlarımızı
dative (yönelme) atımıza atlarımıza
locative (bulunma) atımızda atlarımızda
ablative (çıkma) atımızdan atlarımızdan
genitive (tamlayan) atımızın atlarımızın
sizin (your) singular (tekil) plural (çoğul)
nominative (yalın) atınız atlarınız
definite accusative (belirtme) atınızı atlarınızı
dative (yönelme) atınıza atlarınıza
locative (bulunma) atınızda atlarınızda
ablative (çıkma) atınızdan atlarınızdan
genitive (tamlayan) atınızın atlarınızın
onların (their) singular (tekil) plural (çoğul)
nominative (yalın) atları atları
definite accusative (belirtme) atlarını atlarını
dative (yönelme) atlarına atlarına
locative (bulunma) atlarında atlarında
ablative (çıkma) atlarından atlarından
genitive (tamlayan) atlarının atlarının

Descendants

  • Greek: άτι m ‎(áti, “horse”)

Verb

at

  1. second-person singular imperative of atmak

Antonyms

Turkmen

Etymology 1

From Old Turkic 𐱃 ‎(at), from Proto-Turkic *at, *ăt ‎(“horse”).

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /at/

Noun

at ‎(definite accusative ady, plural atlar)

  1. horse
Declension

Etymology 2

From Old Turkic 𐰀𐱃 ‎(āt, “name”), from Proto-Turkic *āt (compare Chuvash ят ‎(jat, “name”)).

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /aːt/

Noun

at ‎(definite accusative ady, plural atlar)

  1. name
Declension

Volapük

Determiner

at

  1. (demonstrative) this

Welsh

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /at/

Preposition

at

  1. to, towards
  2. for
  3. at
  4. by

Usage notes

This preposition causes the soft mutation.

Inflection

West Frisian

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ɔt/

Conjunction

at

  1. if

Synonyms

Wolof

Pronunciation

Noun

  1. year

Etymology

From Middle English at, from Old English æt ‎(“at, near, by, toward”), from Proto-Germanic *at ‎(“at, near, to”), from Proto-Indo-European *ád ‎(“near, at”). Cognate with Scots at ‎(“at”), North Frisian äät, äit, et, it ‎(“at”), Danish at ‎(“to”), Faroese at ‎(“at, to, toward”), Norwegian åt ‎(“to”), Swedish åt ‎(“for, toward”), Icelandic að ‎(“to, towards”), Gothic 𐌰𐍄 ‎(at, “at”), Latin ad ‎(“to, near”).


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