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al·a·mo

(ălə-mō′)

n. pl. al·a·mos
Southwestern US

A poplar tree, especially a cottonwood.

[Spanish álamo, poplar, from Old Spanish, of unknown origin.]

Al·a·mo

(al??-mo')

A church built after 1744 as part of a Spanish mission in San Antonio, Texas, and converted to a fort in the early 1800s. During the Texas Revolution against Mexican rule, it was besieged (February 23 to March 6, 1836) by the Mexican army, who killed all the members of the Texas garrison.

(click for a larger image)

Alamo

façade of the chapel at the Alamo

San Antonio, Texas

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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