A la or ala?
a la is a preposition meaning “In the style or manner of”; ala is a noun meaning “A wing or winglike anatomic process or part, especially of bone”. Use a la as a preposition and ala as a noun. a la is written as two words and ala as one word; they are used differently.
What is the difference between a la and ala?
| a la | ala | |
|---|---|---|
| Part of speech | preposition | noun, preposition |
| Meaning | In the style or manner of | A wing or winglike anatomic process or part, especially of bone The flattened border of some stems, fruits, and seeds, or one of the two side petals of certain flowers in the pea family |
| Example | […] the flaming purification of Diane Johnson's Los Angeles a la Sodom and Gomorrah […] | none recorded |
| Forms | ala | alae, alæ |
| Pronunciation | /ˌæ læ/ /ˌɑ lɑ/ | /ˈeɪ.lə/ |
| In writing | not counted (the list counts single words) | 3.4 times per million words |
Sources: a la and ala in the English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0); written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
Every current meaning of a la and ala
a la
- 1
In the style or manner of
[…] the flaming purification of Diane Johnson's Los Angeles a la Sodom and Gomorrah […]
- 2
Alternative form of a la
ala
- 1
A wing or winglike anatomic process or part, especially of bone
- 2
colloquialAlternative form of a la
- 3
Initialism of alpha linolenic acid
- 4
The flattened border of some stems, fruits, and seeds, or one of the two side petals of certain flowers in the pea family
- 5
Initialism of aminolevulinic acid
- 6
In ancient Rome, a small room opening into a larger room or courtyard
Source: the English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0); obsolete, archaic, dialect and rare senses left out.
Which is more common, a la or ala?
a la is a phrase, which the list of single words does not count; ala 3.4 times per million words.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).