Eta
//ˈeɪtə// name, noun, verb
name, noun, verb ·Uncommon ·Advanced level
Definitions
Noun
- 1 The seventh letter of the Modern Greek alphabet, the eighth in Old Greek.
"Greek was an exercise in making the familiar strange. Its alphabet mapped onto the Roman alphabet, but only partly so, and often letters did not sound how they looked — a rho (Ρ) was not a P, and an eta (Η) was not an H."
- 2 A social outcast in Japan who is subjected to menial work, making up a class or caste of such people.
- 3 Alternative form of ita (“kind of palm tree”). alt-of, alternative
- 4 Initialism of estimated time of arrival. abbreviation, alt-of, initialism
"We're even, as long as we're only counting today. Kilo 023, what's your ETA?"
- 5 the 7th letter of the Greek alphabet wordnet
Show 3 more definitions
- 6 A kind of electrically neutral meson having zero spin and isospin. particle
- 7 Initialism of electronic travel authorisation. abbreviation, alt-of, initialism
- 8 Initialism of Elvis tribute artist, a professional impersonator who performs as Elvis Presley. abbreviation, alt-of, initialism
Verb
- 1 Initialism of edited to add. Internet, abbreviation, alt-of, initialism
Proper Noun
- 1 Acronym of Euskadi Ta Askatasuna. abbreviation, acronym, alt-of
- 2 Initialism of Electronic Travel Authority (Australia). abbreviation, alt-of, initialism
Example
More examples"Museum officials think that ETA wanted more Basque art in the museum."
Etymology
Etymology 1
From Ancient Greek ἦτα (êta).
Etymology 2
From Japanese 穢多 (“full of filth”) (literal translation, now considered derogatory in Japan).
Related phrases
More for "eta"
Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.