interjection
āh
āh
Classical[ˈaː(ɦ)]Ecclesiastical[ˈa]
Meaning
- ah
āh or ā (v. Neue, Formenl. II. 812), interj. [acc. to Prisc. 570 P. contract. from aha],
I. ah! alas! ha! ah me! an exclamation.
II. Of entreaty to avert an evil:
ah! noli, do not, I pray! Plaut. Am. 1, 3, 22. —III. Of indignation or reproach:
ah stulte, Ter. Ad. 4, 7, 6: ah, rogitas? id. And. 5, 1, 9; 3, 1, 11.—V. Of consolation:
quid? ah volet, certo scio, Ter. Eun. 5, 2, 50.—VI. Of raillery or joy, Plaut. Curc. 1, 2, 39.
Charlton Lewis's shorter dictionary for students: the same scholarship in plain, modern definitions.
āh or ā
interj.—Of distress or pity, ah! alas! H.—Of reproach or admonition, ah! oh! V.—Of surprise, Oh! I see! H.
Origins
Inherited from Proto-Indo-European *ā or perhaps *h₂eh₂.