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al·ley¹

(ălē)

n. pl. al·leys

1. A narrow street or passageway between or behind city buildings.

2. A path between flower beds or trees in a garden or park.

3. Sports

a. A straight narrow course or track, especially a bowling alley.

b. Either of the parallel lanes at the sides of a tennis court, which widen the inbounds area for doubles play.

Idiom:

up (one's) alley Informal

Compatible with one's interests or qualifications: an assignment that is right up your alley.

[Middle English alei, from Old French alee, from aler, to walk, from Latin ambulāre; see AMBULATE.]

al·ley²

(ălē)

n. pl. al·leys
Games

A large playing marble, often used as the shooter.

[Short for ALABASTER.]

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

Indo-European Roots

Semitic Roots

The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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