U • FREE TRANSLATOR.ORG • Definition of U

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noun

U n. The twenty-first letter of the English alphabet, is a cursive form of the letter V, with which it was formerly used interchangeably, both letters being then used both as vowels and consonants. U and V are now, however, differentiated, U being used only as a vowel or semivowel, and V only as a consonant. The true primary vowel sound of U, in Anglo-Saxon, was the sound which it still retains in most of the languages of Europe, that of long oo, as in tool, and short oo, as in wood, answering to the French ou in tour. Etymologically U is most closely related to o, y (vowel), w, and v; as in two, duet, dyad, twice; top, tuft; sop, sup; auspice, aviary. See V, also O and Y.

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Etymology of 'U'

Collaborative International Dictionary of English 0.48

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"U" Quotes from Famous Books

... tail 1 Foot 1 Inch; from the tip of one to the tip of the other wing 1 Foot 51/2 Inches. the Conta. the size & the whole Contour of this bird resembles very much the blue jay or jaybird as they are called in the U States. like them also they seldom rest in one place long but are in constant motion hoping from spra to spray. what has been said is more immediately applicable to the male, the colours of the female are somewhat different in her the head crest ...

— The Journals of Lewis and Clark • Meriwether Lewis et al

... ran], mr rite call he want to see u pertikler i tole im as you was in country & give im ur adress hope i dun ...

— The Yellow Streak • Williams, Valentine

... themselves to sound slumber. All night the officers of the Wolverine slept on the verge of waking, but it was not until dawn that the cry of "Sail-ho!" sent them all hurrying to their clothes. Ordinarily officers of the U.S. Navy do not scuttle on deck like a crowd of curious schoolgirls, but all hands had been keyed to a high pitch over the elusive light, and the bet with Edwards now served as an excuse for the betrayal of ...

— The Mystery • Stewart Edward White and Samuel Hopkins Adams

... unfavourable to the United States. He has taken this action because the public feeling against the Administration is constantly increasing. Because the Lusitania controversy has been going on so long, and because the Germans are using it in their renewed U-boat campaign, the opinion of this country has reached a point where only prompt action can bring a turn in the tide. Therefore my loyalty to you would not be complete if I should refrain from sending, in the most respectful terms, the solemn conviction which I hold about our ...

— The Life and Letters of Walter H. Page, Volume II • Burton J. Hendrick

... pick out gold, in a fairly desultory fashion. In old "mullock" heaps or crvices in rocks. jackaroo: (Jack kangaroo; sometimes jackeroo)—someone, in early days a new immigrant from England, learning to work on a sheep/cattle station (U.S. "ranch".) kiddy: young child. "kid" plus ubiquitous Australia "-y" or "-ie" nobbler: a drink, esp. of spirits overlanding: driving (or, "droving", cattle from pasture to market or railhead.) pannikin: a metal mug. Pipeclay: or ...

— The Rising of the Court • Henry Lawson

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