Alackaday

Part of speech: interjection

Definitions

1. An old-fashioned exclamation of sorrow, regret or dismay used when something unfortunate has happened
2. A archaic cry of lament voiced to express sadness or disappointment over a misfortune
3. An outdated interjection that conveys grief, pity or wistful regret at an unhappy turn of events

Etymology: "Alackaday" is an old exclamation of sorrow or regret, and it is built from the same parts as "alack." That word appeared in Middle English as "alacke" or "alagge," and its likeliest origin is a pairing of "ah," a cry of distress, with "lack," meaning want or loss. So the two words together amount to a wail over something lacking, a kind of sigh rendered in speech. "Alackaday" takes that cry and adds "a day," with the form "alack-a-day" stringing the sigh out into a longer lament. The added phrase follows the pattern of other interjections that grew by attaching a short tag to an existing exclamation, so the word reads as a more drawn-out version of the original cry. Its sound carries the feeling: the stress falls on the middle syllables, and the rhythm mimics a mournful sigh.

Synonyms: alas, alack