ay

ay · interjection¹

1. Middle English · inherited fromei, ej, ey, eye
2. English todayay

From Middle English ei, ej, ey, eye, ultimately imitative of the natural utterance, although probably also influenced by Anglo-Norman and Old French ahi, Old French haï, and Middle French aï, aïe, ay.

ay · interjection, noun²

See aye.

ay · adverb³

1. Proto-Indo-European · derived from*h₂eyu-“vitality”
2. Proto-Germanic · derived from*aiwaz“eternity, age”
3. Old Norse · derived fromei
4. Middle English · inherited fromay
5. English todayay

From Middle English ay, ai, from Old Norse ei, from Proto-Germanic *aiwaz (“eternity, age”), from Proto-Indo-European *h₂eyu- (“vitality”); cognate with Old English ā, Ancient Greek ἀεί (aeí, “always”), and Latin aevum (“an age”).

ay · interjection⁴

Origin uncertain; possibly related to eh and hey; popularized by a catch phrase in a 1970s sitcom.

Words from the same roots