ele

See also: Appendix:Variations of "ele"

Languages (26)

Translingual • English

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Abure • Baoule • Basque • Blagar • Catalan • Chavacano • Creek • Finnish • Galician • Igala • Jeru • Middle English • Nupe • Old English • Old French • Palenquero • Pali • Portuguese • Romanian • Salar • Spanish • Tagalog • Turkish • Volapük

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Page categories

Translingual

Symbol

ele

1. (international standards) ISO 639-3 language code for Elepi.

See also

• Wiktionary’s coverage of Elepi terms

English

Etymology

Clipping of elephant.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈɛliː/

Noun

ele (plural eles)

1. (informal) Elephant.

Anagrams

• eel, lee

Abure

Noun

ele

1. firewood

Baoule

Pronoun

ele

1. you (2nd person singular pronoun)

Basque

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ele/ [e.le]

• Audio:

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ele, -e
• Hyphenation: e‧le

Noun

ele inan

1. The name of the Latin script letter L/l.

Declension

Declension of ele (inan V-stem)

	indefinite	singular	plural	proximal plural
absolutive	ele	elea	eleak	eleok
ergative	elek	eleak	eleek	eleok
dative	eleri	eleari	eleei	eleoi
genitive	eleren	elearen	eleen	eleon
comitative	elerekin	elearekin	eleekin	eleokin
causative	elerengatik	elearengatik	eleengatik	eleongatik
benefactive	elerentzat	elearentzat	eleentzat	eleontzat
instrumental	elez	eleaz	eleez	eleotaz
inessive	eletan	elean	eleetan	eleotan
locative	eletako	eleko	eleetako	eleotako
allative	eletara	elera	eleetara	eleotara
terminative	eletaraino	eleraino	eleetaraino	eleotaraino
directive	eletarantz	elerantz	eleetarantz	eleotarantz
destinative	eletarako	elerako	eleetarako	eleotarako
ablative	eletatik	eletik	eleetatik	eleotatik
partitive	elerik	—	—	—
prolative	eletzat	—	—	—

See also

• (Latin-script letter names) a, be, ze, de, e, efe, ge, hatxe, i, jota, ka, ele, eme, ene, eñe, o, pe, ku, erre, ese, te, u, uve, uve bikoitz, ixa, i greko, zeta

Further reading

• “ele”, in Euskaltzaindiaren Hiztegia [Dictionary of the Basque Academy] (in Basque), Euskaltzaindia [Royal Academy of the Basque Language]
• “ele”, in Orotariko Euskal Hiztegia [General Basque Dictionary], Euskaltzaindia, 1987–2005

Blagar

Adjective

ele

1. big

References

• Antoinette Schapper, The Papuan Languages of Timor, Alor and Pantar: Volume 1 (2014), p. 158

Catalan

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): (Central, Balearic) [ˈe.lə]
• IPA^(key): (Valencia) [ˈe.le]

Noun

ele f (plural eles)

1. (Valencia) alternative form of ela

Further reading

• “ele” in Diccionari normatiu valencià, Acadèmia Valenciana de la Llengua.

Chavacano

Alternative forms

• le (colloquial)

Etymology

Inherited from Spanish él (“he”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈele/, [ˈe.le]
• IPA^(key): /ˈle/, [ˈle] (colloquial)
• Hyphenation: e‧le

Pronoun

ele

1. he; she

Creek

Pronunciation

• (Oklahoma) IPA^(key): [ɪlɪ́]
• Hyphenation: e‧le

Noun

ele

1. his/her leg, foot

Declension

Declension of ele

Absolutive	ele
Subjective	elet
Objective	elen

Possessive inflection of ele (inalienable)

	Singular	Plural
First person	cvle	pole
Second person	cele
Third person	ele
Indefinite	estele

References

• J. B. Martin; M. McKane Mauldrin (2004), A dictionary of Creek/Muscogee, University of Nebraska Press, →ISBN, page 23
• J. B. Martin (2011), A grammar of Creek (Muscogee), University of Nebraska Press, →ISBN, page 134

Finnish

Etymology

elää +‎ -e

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈeleˣ/, [ˈe̞le̞(ʔ)]

• Audio:

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ele
• Syllabification^(key): e‧le
• Hyphenation^(key): ele

Noun

ele

1. gesture, sign

Declension

Inflection of ele (Kotus type 48/hame, no gradation)
nominative		ele	eleet
genitive		eleen	eleiden eleitten
partitive		elettä	eleitä
illative		eleeseen	eleisiin eleihin
		singular	plural
nominative		ele	eleet
accusative	nom.	ele	eleet
	gen.	eleen
genitive		eleen	eleiden eleitten
partitive		elettä	eleitä
inessive		eleessä	eleissä
elative		eleestä	eleistä
illative		eleeseen	eleisiin eleihin
adessive		eleellä	eleillä
ablative		eleeltä	eleiltä
allative		eleelle	eleille
essive		eleenä	eleinä
translative		eleeksi	eleiksi
abessive		eleettä	eleittä
instructive		—	elein
comitative		See the possessive forms below.

Possessive forms of ele (Kotus type 48/hame, no gradation)

first-person singular possessor singular plural nominative eleeni eleeni accusative nom. eleeni eleeni gen. eleeni genitive eleeni eleideni eleitteni partitive elettäni eleitäni inessive eleessäni eleissäni elative eleestäni eleistäni illative eleeseeni eleisiini eleihini adessive eleelläni eleilläni ablative eleeltäni eleiltäni allative eleelleni eleilleni essive eleenäni eleinäni translative eleekseni eleikseni abessive eleettäni eleittäni instructive — — comitative — eleineni second-person singular possessor singular plural nominative eleesi eleesi accusative nom. eleesi eleesi gen. eleesi genitive eleesi eleidesi eleittesi partitive elettäsi eleitäsi inessive eleessäsi eleissäsi elative eleestäsi eleistäsi illative eleeseesi eleisiisi eleihisi adessive eleelläsi eleilläsi ablative eleeltäsi eleiltäsi allative eleellesi eleillesi essive eleenäsi eleinäsi translative eleeksesi eleiksesi abessive eleettäsi eleittäsi instructive — — comitative — eleinesi first-person plural possessor singular plural nominative eleemme eleemme accusative nom. eleemme eleemme gen. eleemme genitive eleemme eleidemme eleittemme partitive elettämme eleitämme inessive eleessämme eleissämme elative eleestämme eleistämme illative eleeseemme eleisiimme eleihimme adessive eleellämme eleillämme ablative eleeltämme eleiltämme allative eleellemme eleillemme essive eleenämme eleinämme translative eleeksemme eleiksemme abessive eleettämme eleittämme instructive — — comitative — eleinemme second-person plural possessor singular plural nominative eleenne eleenne accusative nom. eleenne eleenne gen. eleenne genitive eleenne eleidenne eleittenne partitive elettänne eleitänne inessive eleessänne eleissänne elative eleestänne eleistänne illative eleeseenne eleisiinne eleihinne adessive eleellänne eleillänne ablative eleeltänne eleiltänne allative eleellenne eleillenne essive eleenänne eleinänne translative eleeksenne eleiksenne abessive eleettänne eleittänne instructive — — comitative — eleinenne third-person possessor singular plural nominative eleensä eleensä accusative nom. eleensä eleensä gen. eleensä genitive eleensä eleidensä eleittensä partitive elettään elettänsä eleitään eleitänsä inessive eleessään eleessänsä eleissään eleissänsä elative eleestään eleestänsä eleistään eleistänsä illative eleeseensä eleisiinsä eleihinsä adessive eleellään eleellänsä eleillään eleillänsä ablative eleeltään eleeltänsä eleiltään eleiltänsä allative eleelleen eleellensä eleilleen eleillensä essive eleenään eleenänsä eleinään eleinänsä translative eleekseen eleeksensä eleikseen eleiksensä abessive eleettään eleettänsä eleittään eleittänsä instructive — — comitative — eleineen eleinensä

Derived terms

• eleetön
• elehtiä
• -eleinen

compounds

• elekieli
• elenäytelmä
• elenäyttelijä
• niukkaeleinen
• suurieleinen
• vähäeleinen

Related terms

• elää

See also

• ilme
• viittoa

Further reading

• “ele”, in Kielitoimiston sanakirja [Dictionary of Contemporary Finnish]‎^[1] (in Finnish) (online dictionary, continuously updated), Kotimaisten kielten keskuksen verkkojulkaisuja 35, Helsinki: Kotimaisten kielten tutkimuskeskus (Institute for the Languages of Finland), 2004–, retrieved 2 July 2023

Anagrams

• lee

Galician

Etymology 1

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈɛle/ [ˈɛ.lɪ]
• Rhymes: -ɛle

• Hyphenation: e‧le

Noun

ele m (plural eles)

1. The name of the Latin script letter L/l.

See also

• (Latin-script letter names) letra; a, be, ce, de, e, efe, gue, hache, i, ele, eme, ene, eñe, o, pe, que, erre, ese, te, u, uve, xe, ceta / zeta

Etymology 2

From Old Galician-Portuguese ele, from Latin ille (“that, he, she, it”). Displaced by el in the standard orthography.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈele/ [ˈe.lɪ]
• Rhymes: -ele

• Hyphenation: e‧le

Pronoun

ele

1. reintegrationist spelling of el (“he”)

Further reading

• “ele”, in Dicionario da Real Academia Galega (in Galician), A Coruña: Royal Galician Academy, 2012–2026
• “ele”, in Dicionário Estraviz de galego (in Galician), 2014–2026

Igala

Noun

éle

1. gift

Jeru

Noun

ele

1. lightning

References

• Raoul Zamponi; Bernard Comrie (2021), A Grammar of Akajeru: Fragments of a traditional North Andamanese dialect, London: UCL Press, →DOI, →ISBN, page 84

Middle English

Etymology 1

Inherited from Old English ele, from Proto-West Germanic *oli, from Latin oleum, from Ancient Greek ἔλαιον (élaion). Doublet of olie and oyle.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈɛ̞ːl(ə)/

Noun

ele (uncountable)

1. (especially Early Middle English) Oil; liquid fat.

Derived terms

• elen

References

• “ēle, n.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007.

Etymology 2

PIE root
*h₂eḱs-

Borrowed from Anglo-Norman ele, eile (“wing”), from Latin āla; the pronunciation /ˈiːl(ə)/ and corresponding forms is due to influence from yle (“island”); compare Medieval Latin īnsula (“aisle”). First attested in 1398.

Alternative forms

• ell, eyle, hele, ilde, ile, ill, ille, yele, yle
• eill (Northern); iill, yill (Early Scots)

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈɛːl(ə)/, /ˈiːl(ə)/

Noun

ele (plural eles)

1. Aisle (side wing of a church, often separated by pillars)
2. (rare) Any similar division, or a covered passageway or arcade resembling such a division.

Descendants

• English: aisle
• Middle Scots: ile

References

• “ēle, n.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007.
• “aisle, n.”, in OED Online ⁠, Oxford: Oxford University Press, launched 2000.
• “ile, yle, n.²”, in The Dictionary of the Scots Language, Edinburgh: Scottish Language Dictionaries, 2004–present, →OCLC, reproduced from William A[lexander] Craigie, A[dam] J[ack] Aitken [et al.], editors, A Dictionary of the Older Scottish Tongue: […], Oxford, Oxfordshire: Oxford University Press, 1931–2002, →OCLC.

Etymology 3

Noun

ele

1. alternative form of el (“eel”)

Nupe

Etymology 1

e- (“nominalizing prefix”) +‎ le (“to lay down”)

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ē.lē/

Noun

ele

1. sleep

Derived terms

• sanle (“to wake up”)
• lele (“to sleep”)

Etymology 2

Ele

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ē.lē/

Noun

ele

1. rain

   Ele à dù. ― It's going to rain. (literally, “Rain will fall.”)

Old English

Alternative forms

• œle, ole

Etymology

From Proto-West Germanic *oli, from Latin oleum.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈe.le/

Noun

ele m

1. oil
   • Ic ðē secge lxxx wintra of ðām trēowcynne ðe is nemned Sem.

     I tell thee, eighty years, of the wood that is called Sem

   • Wonders of the East

     On þysse stōwe beoð trēowcynn þā beoð laurbēame ⁊ eletrēowum ġelīċe. Of ðām trēowum balsamum sē dēorweorðesta ele bið eall kenned.

     In this place there are kinds of trees that similar to a laurel or olive tree. From those trees balsamum, the most precious oil, is all produced.

Declension

Strong a-stem:

	singular	plural
nominative	ele	elas
accusative	ele	elas
genitive	eles	ela
dative	ele	elum

Synonyms

• crisma
• smiering

Derived terms

• elebacen
• elebēam
• eleberġe
• elebytt
• eledrōsna
• elefæt
• elegrēofa
• elehorn
• elelēast
• eleseohhe
• eletrēow
• fulwihtele
• liþule
• wynele

Descendants

• Middle English: ele
  • ⇒ Middle English: elen (verb)

Old French

Etymology 1

From Latin illa (nominative), illam (accusative), feminine of ille.

Pronoun

ele f (masculine il)

1. she

Descendants

• French: elle

Etymology 2

From Latin ala.

Noun

ele oblique singular, f (oblique plural eles, nominative singular ele, nominative plural eles)

1. wing (anatomy)

Descendants

• French: aile

Palenquero

Etymology

From Spanish él.

Pronoun

ele

1. he/she/it (third-person singular personal pronoun)

Pali

Alternative forms

Alternative scripts

• 𑀏𑀮𑁂 (Brahmi script)
• एले (Devanagari script)
• এলে (Bengali script)
• එලෙ (Sinhalese script)
• ဧလေ or ဨလေ or ဢေလေ (Burmese script)
• เอเล (Thai script)
• ᩑᩃᩮ (Tai Tham script)
• ເອເລ (Lao script)
• ឯលេ (Khmer script)
• 𑄃𑄬𑄣𑄬 (Chakma script)

Noun

ele

1. vocative singular of elā (“cardamom seeds”)

Portuguese

Etymology 1

From Old Galician-Portuguese ele, from Latin ille (“that, he, she, it”).

Alternative forms

• êle (pre-reform spelling)
• elle (pre-standardization spelling)
• êlle (obsolete)

Pronunciation

 

• (Brazil) IPA^(key): /ˈe.li/

• (Brazil) IPA^(key): /ˈe.li/
  • (Southern Brazil) IPA^(key): /ˈe.le/

• (Portugal) IPA^(key): /ˈe.lɨ/

• (São Miguel, Azores) IPA^(key): /ˈɐl/
• Hyphenation: e‧le

• Audio (São Paulo):

  (file)

Pronoun

ele m (feminine ela, masculine plural eles, feminine plural elas)

2. third-person masculine singular nominative personal pronoun; he; it

   Ele andou até mim.

   He walked towards me.

   • 2003, J. K. Rowling, translated by Lia Wyler, Harry Potter e a Ordem da Fênix [Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix] (Harry Potter; 5), Rio de Janeiro: Rocco, →ISBN, page 182:

     Ele tem razão, eu não quero mais dormir no mesmo dormitório que ele, ele é doido.

     He is right, I don't want to sleep in the same dormitory as him anymore, he is crazy.

   • 2003, J. K. Rowling, translated by Lia Wyler, Harry Potter e a Ordem da Fênix [Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix] (Harry Potter; 5), Rio de Janeiro: Rocco, →ISBN, page 643:

     Ele nunca vai reparar na gente [...]

     He will never notice us [...]

   • 2005, J. K. Rowling, translated by Lia Wyler, Harry Potter e o Enigma do Príncipe [Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince] (Harry Potter; 6), Rio de Janeiro: Rocco, →ISBN, page 359:

     Ele se aproximou e experimentou empurrá-la.

     He came closer and tried to push it.

4. third-person masculine singular prepositional pronoun; him; it

   Eu gosto de conversar com ele.

   I enjoy talking to him.

6. (Brazil) third-person masculine singular personal pronoun used in all positions; he; him; it

   Um homem matou ele.

   A man killed him.

Usage notes

The following preposition contractions are mandatory:

• ‎de + ‎ele → ‎dele
• ‎em + ‎ele → ‎nele

Descendants

• Indo-Portuguese: êll

See also

Portuguese personal pronouns

number	person		nominative (subject)	accusative (direct object)	dative (indirect object)	prepositional	prepositional with com	non-declining
singular	first		eu	me		mim	comigo	—
	second		tu	te		ti	contigo	você o senhor m a senhora f
	third	m	ele	o (lo, no)	lhe	ele	com ele	o mesmo
		f	ela	a (la, na)		ela	com ela	a mesma
plural	first		nós	nos		nós	connosco (Portugal) conosco (Brazil)	a gente
	second		vós	vos		vós	convosco com vós	vocês os senhores m as senhoras f
	third	m	eles	os (los, nos)	lhes	eles	com eles	os mesmos
		f	elas	as (las, nas)		elas	com elas	as mesmas
reflexive third / indefinite			—	se		si	consigo	o mesmo etc. (reflexive)

Etymology 2

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Pronunciation

 

• (Brazil) IPA^(key): /ˈɛ.li/

• (Brazil) IPA^(key): /ˈɛ.li/
  • (Southern Brazil) IPA^(key): /ˈɛ.le/

• (Portugal) IPA^(key): /ˈɛ.lɨ/

• Rhymes: (Brazil) -ɛli, (Portugal) -ɛlɨ
• Hyphenation: e‧le

Noun

ele m (plural eles)

2. The name of the Latin script letter L/l.

   Synonym: (Northeast Brazil) lê

See also

• (Latin-script letter names) letra; á, bê, cê, dê, é, efe, gê / guê, agá, i, jota, cá / capa, ele, eme, ene, ó, pê, quê, erre, esse, tê, u, vê, dáblio, xis, ípsilon, zê

Further reading

• “ele”, in Dicionário Aulete Digital (in Portuguese), Rio de Janeiro: Lexikon Editora Digital, 2008–2026
• “ele”, in Michaelis Dicionário Brasileiro da Língua Portuguesa (in Portuguese), São Paulo: Editora Melhoramentos, 2015–2026, →ISBN
• “ele”, in Dicionário infopédia da Lingua Portuguesa (in Portuguese), Porto: Porto Editora, 2003–2026
• “ele”, in Dicionário Priberam da Língua Portuguesa (in Portuguese), Lisbon: Priberam, 2008–2026

Romanian

Etymology

Inherited from Latin illae, nominative feminine plural of ille.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈje.le/

• Audio:

  (file)

• Audio:

  (file)

Pronoun

ele f pl (third-person plural, masculine equivalent ei)

1. (nominative form) they (for a group composed completely of females)

   Synonym: (polite form) dumnealor

Declension

Declension of ele

	stressed	unstressed
nominative	ele
accusative	ele	le
dative	lor	le
genitive	lor
possessive forms
	singular	plural
masculine	lor	lor
neuter		lor
feminine	lor
reflexive forms
	stressed	unstressed
accusative	sine	se
dative	sieși	își

Pronoun

ele f (stressed accusative form of ele)

1. (direct object, preceded by preposition, such as "pe", "cu", "la", or "pentru") them (all-female group)

Related terms

• ea (third-person feminine singular)
• el (third-person masculine singular)
• ei (third-person masculine plural)

See also

Romanian personal pronouns

		singular	plural
1st person		eu	noi
2nd person	plain	tu	voi
	semi-polite	dumneata	dumneavoastră
	polite	dumneavoastră
3rd person	familiar m	el	ei
	familiar f	ea	ele
	polite m	dumnealui	dumnealor
	polite f	dumneaei

Salar

Etymology

Inherited from Proto-Oghuz *eyle. Cognate with Azerbaijani elə, Gagauz ölä, Turkish öyle, Turkmen eýle.

Pronunciation

• (Xunhua, Qinghai; Gansu; Ili, Xinjiang) IPA^(key): /ele/

Adverb

ele

1. away

   Andan ele otır!

   Stay away from him!

2. across

   Özen ele yandağı ağıl.

   The river across the village.

3. there, that way

   Ele yandarmas!

   No coming back there!

Interjection

ele

1. Get out of the way!

Derived terms

• eliği (“like that”)

Related terms

• bele (“here, this way”)
• ele-bele

References

• 林莲云 [Lin Lianyun] (1985), “ele”, in 撒拉语简志 [A Brief History of Salar]‎^[2], Beijing: 民族出版社: 琴書店, →OCLC, page 51
• Tenishev, Edhem (1976), “ele”, in Stroj salárskovo jazyká [Grammar of Salar], Moscow: Nauka, page 324
• Ma, Chengjun; Han, Lianye; Ma, Weisheng (December 2010), “ele”, in 米娜瓦尔·艾比布拉 [Minavar Abibra], editor, 撒维汉词典 [Sā-Wéi-Hàn cídiǎn, Salar-Uyghur-Chinese dictionary] (in Chinese), 1st edition, Beijing, →ISBN, page 100
• 马伟 [Ma Wei] (2016), “ele”, in 濒危语言——撒拉语研究 [Endangered Languages ​​- Salar Language Studies], 青海 [Qīnghǎi, Qinghai]: 青海师范大学 [Qinghai Normal University], unpublished finalized project manuscript (国家社会科学基金项目结项稿, 定稿; National Social Science Fund of China), pages 39, 234

Spanish

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈele/ [ˈe.le]

• Audio:

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ele
• Syllabification: e‧le

Noun

ele f (plural eles)

1. The name of the Latin script letter L/l.

Further reading

• “ele”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.8.1, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 15 December 2025

Tagalog

Etymology

Borrowed from Spanish ele, the Spanish name of the letter L / l.

Pronunciation

• (Standard Tagalog) IPA^(key): /ˈʔele/ [ˈʔɛː.lɛ]
• Rhymes: -ele
• Syllabification: e‧le

Noun

ele (Baybayin spelling ᜁᜎᜒ)

1. (historical) the name of the Latin script letter L/l, in the Abecedario

   Synonyms: (in the Filipino alphabet) el, (in the Abakada alphabet) la

Further reading

• “ele”, in Pambansang Diksiyonaryo | Diksiyonaryo.ph, 2018

Anagrams

• Lee

Turkish

Noun

ele

1. dative singular of el

Volapük

Article

ele

1. dative singular of el