yyyy
Definition(s) of “Y”
y
abbreviation
year(s) : orbital period (Pluto): 248.5y.
-y 1 |ē|
suffix forming adjectives:
1 (from nouns and adjectives) full of; having the quality of : messy | milky | mousy.
• with depreciatory reference : boozy | tinny.
2 (from verbs) inclined to; apt to : sticky.
ORIGIN Old English -ig, of Germanic origin.
-y 2 (also -ey or -ie)
suffix
forming diminutive nouns and adjectives, nicknames, hypocoristics, etc. : aunty | Tommy | nightie.
• forming verbs : shinny.
ORIGIN Middle English : originally Scots.
-y 3
suffix forming nouns:
1 denoting a state, condition, or quality : glory | jealousy | orthodoxy.
2 denoting an action or its result : blasphemy | victory.
ORIGIN from French -ie, from Latin -ia, -ium, or Greek -eia, -ia.
Y 1 |wī| (also y)
noun ( pl. Ys or Y's )
1 the twenty-fifth letter of the alphabet.
• denoting the next after X in a set of items, categories, etc.
• denoting a second unknown or unspecified person or thing : the claim that chemical X causes birth defect Y.
• (usu. y ) the second unknown quantity in an algebraic expression, usually the dependent variable. [ORIGIN: the introduction of x, y, and z as symbols of unknown quantities is due to Descartes (see X 1 ).]
• (usu. y ) denoting the secondary or vertical axis in a system of coordinates : [in combination ] the y -axis.
2 ( Y) a shape like that of a capital Y : [in combination ] rows of tiny Y-shaped motifs.
Y 2
abbreviation
• yen : Y140.
• informal a YMCA, YWCA, YMHA, or YWHA facility : Scott was living at the Y.
symbol
the chemical element yttrium.
yttrium |ˈitrēəm|
noun
the chemical element of atomic number 39, a grayish-white metal generally included among the rare-earth elements. (Symbol: Y)
ORIGIN early 19th cent.: modern Latin, from Ytterby (see ytterbium ).