n. A plant of the genus Morinda, allied to the madder.n. An old form of all.n. In chem., the symbol for aluminium.n. An assimilated form of Latin ad- before l (see ad-); also an erroneous form of a-, from Anglo-Saxon ā-. See ad-.n. A prefix in some words of Arabic origin, being the Arabic definite article “the”; as in alcaid, alchemy, alcohol, alcove, Aldebaran, algebra, alguazil, alkali, Alkoran, etc.; and, variously disguised, in apricot, artichoke, assagai, azimuth, hazard, lute, etc.; also el, as in elixir.n. A very common suffix, of Latin origin.n. manualn. etc.: in this use equivalent to -ar, of the same ultimate origin, as in alar, polar, both forms occurring with a differentiation of meaning in lineal, linear (which see).n. Secondary from primary adjectives, as in equaln. whence in English -al is now applied to Latin adjectives ending in -e-us, -i-us, -u-us, -rn-us, -i-s, -ic-us, etc., to give them a distinctive English form, as in aerial, senatorial, perpetual, eternal, celestial, medical, etc., and similarly to Greek adjectives in -ικ-ός, -ακ-ός, -οειδ-ής (English -ic, -ac, -oid), etc., as in musical, heliacal, rhomboidal, etc.; hence in some cases a differentiation of meaning, as in comic and comical, historic and historical, etc.n. Nouns from such adjectives, as in animal, rival, etc.n. Nouns from verbs in English after the analogy of espousal, as in denial, proposal, refusal, etc., and even from native English verbs, as in bestowal, betrothal, withdrawal, etc.n. The name is applied in India to several species of Morinda, especially to Morinda citrifolia and M. tinctoria, trees belonging to the madder family, which grow spontaneously and are also cultivated for the sake of the dye obtained from the bark of their roots and stem. The smallest roots yield the most valuable dye, the stem the most inferior. The al dye is gradually supplanting the more expensive red obtained from the Indian madder, or chaya root (Oldenlandia umbellata), with which the celebrated Madras handkerchiefs and turbans were formerly dyed. Morinda citrifolia, the principal al-tree, is widely spread throughout the East Indies, the west coast of Africa, and the islands of the Pacific Ocean, where its fruit is sometimes eaten by the natives. See nonu.n. A nominal prefix, actually a reduction of alcohol in certain arbitrary formations, as aldehyde (and its numerous recent derivatives), *althionic, etc. Compare -al. Compare alk- in words like alkamine, etc. (where alk- represents G. alkohol), and -ol, representing the last syllable of alcohol.n. In bridal, burial, etc., a nominal suffix, associated with -al, but actually of different origin, according to the history of each word. See the etymologies of the words cited.n. In chem., a termination now recognized as signifying that the body named is an aldehyde, or derived from alcohol. Thus ordinary aldehyde is also called ethanal, that is, the aldehyde of ethane.
