alas
AdverbUS[uh-las]/əˈlæs/2 syllables
Open English WordNet
Adverb (1)
- by bad luck“unfortunately it rained all day”“alas, I cannot stay”Synonyms: unfortunatelyunluckilyregrettablyOpposite as luck would have itFrom unlucky
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Webster's Dictionary (1913)
A·las′ (…), interjection
Origin: OE. alas, allas, OF. alas, F. hélas; a interj. (L. ah.) + las wretched (that I am), L. lassus weary, akin to E. late. See Late.
An exclamation expressive of sorrow, pity, or apprehension of evil; — in old writers, sometimes followed by day or white; alas the day, like alack a day, or alas the white.
Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913), from GCIDE 0.54