alpha and omega
English
Alternative forms
Etymology
From alpha and omega, first and final letters of the Greek Alphabet, from Revelation 1:8, see quotations. Translation of Ancient GreekCategory:English terms derived from Ancient Greek#ALPHAANDOMEGA τὸ ἄλφα καὶ τὸ ὦ (tò álpha kaì tò ô).
Pronunciation
Noun
alpha and omega (usually uncountable, plural alphas and omegas)Category:English lemmas#ALPHAANDOMEGACategory:English nouns#ALPHAANDOMEGACategory:English uncountable nouns#ALPHAANDOMEGACategory:English countable nouns#ALPHAANDOMEGACategory:English multiword terms#ALPHAANDOMEGACategory:English entries with incorrect language header#ALPHAANDOMEGACategory:Pages with entries#ALPHA%20AND%20OMEGACategory:Pages with 1 entry#ALPHA%20AND%20OMEGA
- The first and last; the beginning and end.
- 1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Revelation 1:8:
- I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty.Category:English terms with quotations#ALPHAANDOMEGA
- 1831, John Herschel, A Preliminary Discourse on the Study of Natural Philosophy:
- the alpha and omega of scienceCategory:English terms with quotations#ALPHAANDOMEGA
- 1847 October 16, Currer Bell [pseudonym; Charlotte Brontë], Jane Eyre. An Autobiography. […], volume III, London: Smith, Elder, and Co., […], →OCLC:
- That I merited all I endured, I acknowledged—that I could scarcely endure more, I pleaded; and the alpha and omega of my heart’s wishes broke involuntarily from my lips in the words—‘Jane! Jane! Jane!’Category:English terms with quotations#ALPHAANDOMEGA
- 1850 May 1, Thomas Carlyle, “No. V. Stump-Orator.”, in Latter-Day Pamphlets, London: Chapman and Hall, […], →OCLC, pages 155–156:
- We spoke once of vital lungs for Society: and in fact this question always rises as the alpha and omega of social questions, […]Category:English terms with quotations#ALPHAANDOMEGA
Translations
- The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.
See also
Interjection
alpha and omegaCategory:English lemmas#ALPHAANDOMEGACategory:English interjections#ALPHAANDOMEGACategory:English multiword terms#ALPHAANDOMEGACategory:English entries with incorrect language header#ALPHAANDOMEGACategory:Pages with entries#ALPHA%20AND%20OMEGACategory:Pages with 1 entry#ALPHA%20AND%20OMEGA
- An exclamation denoting surprise.
- 1994, Sharon Creech, Walk Two Moons, page 14:
- "Alpha and Omega, will you look at that!"Category:English terms with quotations#ALPHAANDOMEGA