noun
the alphabet evolved by the ancient Romans which serves for writing most of the languages of western Europe
• Syn: ↑Roman alphabet
• Hypernyms: ↑alphabet, ↑bicameral script
• Member Meronyms:
↑A, ↑a, ↑B, ↑b, ↑C, ↑c, ↑D, ↑d, ↑E, ↑e, ↑F, ↑f, ↑G, ↑g, ↑H, ↑h, ↑I, ↑i, ↑J, ↑j, ↑K, ↑k, ↑L, ↑l, ↑M, ↑m, ↑N, ↑n, ↑O, ↑o, ↑P, ↑p, ↑Q, ↑q, ↑R, ↑r, ↑S, ↑s, ↑T, ↑t, ↑U, ↑u, ↑V, ↑v, ↑W, ↑w, ↑double-u, ↑X, ↑x, ↑ex, ↑Y, ↑y, ↑wye, ↑Z, ↑z, ↑zee, ↑zed, ↑ezed, ↑izzard
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nounUsage: usually capitalized L
: an alphabet that was adapted from the early form of the Etruscan alphabet for writing Latin, that had originally 20 or 21 letters but in the classical Latin period 23 and from the Medieval Latin period 26, and that has also come to be used often with minor modifications for writing numerous other languages including English so that it is now the most extensively used of all the world's alphabets — called also Roman alphabet
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the alphabetical script derived from the Greek alphabet through Etruscan, used from about the 6th century B.C. for the writing of Latin, and since adopted, with modifications and additions of letters such as w, by the languages of Western Europe, including English, as well as many other languages. Also called Roman alphabet.
[1865-70]
Useful english dictionary. 2012.