la
/lɑː/noun, interjection, adjective, particle
la is spelled L-A: 2 letters and one syllable. It appears 112 times per million words in written English, the 951st most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, la means “A syllable used in solfège to represent the sixth note of a major scale” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of la is las or las..
How many letters and syllables are in la?
| Letters | 2: L-A |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 1 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 112 times per million words; the 951st most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is la?
La appears 112 times per million words in written English, the 951st most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce la?
- /lɑː/
As a particle (“Placed at the end of a sentence in imperatives making it…”): /lɑː˥/, /lɑː/.
La has one syllable (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Persent101-LA.wav, En-us-la.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Words people confuse with la
Also written: lah.
Sources: English Wiktionary (homophones, alternative spellings).
Forms of la
- las plural
- lah
- law
- las. plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does la mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
A syllable used in solfège to represent the sixth note of a major scale.
- 2
Sometimes syllable for both the third and the sixth.
- 3
lad, kid
- 4
Abbreviation of lane
interjection
- 1
Represents the sound of music or singing.
"La la la la, I can't hear you!" Jimmy said, sticking his fingers in his ears.
- 2
obsoleteUsed to introduce a statement with emphatic or intensive effect.
- 3
archaicExpressing surprise, anger. etc.
adjective
- 1
Prefixed to the name of a woman, with ironic effect (as though an opera prima donna).
particle
- 1
colloquialPlaced at the end of a sentence in imperatives making it sound more like a request than an order.
Sleep la!
- 2
colloquialUsed to tone down comments.
ok la
- 3
colloquialAlternative form of lah.
noun
- 1
Initialism of left atrium.
- 2
Initialism of lead arsenate.
- 3
Initialism of local anesthetic.
- 4
Initialism of lateral area.
- 5
Initialism of local authority.
noun
- 1
Alternative form of LA.
- 2
Abbreviation of lane (in street addresses).
noun
- 1
Sixth tone of the diatonic scale.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
La in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense sixth note of a major scale:
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does la come from?
From Glover's solmization, from Middle English la (“sixth degree or note of Guido of Arezzo's hexachordal scales”), Italian la in the solmization of Guido of Arezzo, from the first syllable of Latin labiī (“lip's”) in the lyrics of the scale-ascending hymn Ut queant laxis by Paulus Deacon.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).