zeta

Ancient Greek alphabet

← epsilon		→ eta
Ζ ζ Ancient Greek: ζῆτα
Wikipedia article on zeta

From the Ancient Greek ζῆτα (zêta). Doublet of zed.

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ˈziː.tə/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /ˈzeɪtə/

• Audio (US):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -iːtə, -eɪtə

zeta (plural zetas)

2. The sixth letter of the modern Greek alphabet (Ζ (Z), ζ (z)) preceded by epsilon (Ε (E), ε (e)) and followed by eta, (Η (I), η (i)); or the seventh letter in the ancient Greek alphabet, in which it is preceded by digamma (Ϝ (W), ϝ (w))
3. (mathematics) A mathematical function formally known as the Riemann zeta function.

   Zeta of 3 is irrational

• (Greek-script letter names) alpha, beta, gamma, delta, epsilon, zeta, eta, theta, iota, kappa, lambda, mu, nu, xi, omicron, pi, rho, sigma, tau, upsilon, phi, chi, psi, omega

• zate

• ceta

From the Ancient Greek ζῆτα (zêta).

zeta f (plural zetes)

1. The name of the Latin-script letter Z/z.
2. zeta (Greek letter)

• Rhymes: -eta, -a
• Hyphenation: ze‧ta

Borrowed from Spanish zeta.

zeta inan

1. The name of the Latin-script letter Z/z.
2. zeta (Greek letter)

• (Latin-script letter names) a, be, ze, de, e, efe, ge, hatxe, i, jota, ka, ele, eme, ene, eñe, o, pe, ku, erre, ese, te, u, uve, uve bikoitz, ixa, i greko, zeta

Borrowed from Latin saeta (“bristle, silk”).

zeta inan

1. silk

   Synonym: ziriku

• “zeta”, in Euskaltzaindiaren Hiztegia [Dictionary of the Basque Academy] (in Basque), Euskaltzaindia [Royal Academy of the Basque Language]
• “zeta”, in Orotariko Euskal Hiztegia [General Basque Dictionary], Euskaltzaindia, 1987–2005

Borrowed from Ancient Greek ζῆτα (zêta).

• IPA^(key): (Central) [ˈzɛ.tə]
• IPA^(key): (Balearic) [ˈze.tə]
• IPA^(key): (Valencia) [ˈze.ta]

zeta f (plural zetes)

1. The name of the Latin-script letter Z/z.
2. the Greek letter Ζ (lowercase ζ)

• “zeta”, in Diccionari de la llengua catalana [Dictionary of the Catalan Language] (in Catalan), second edition, Institute of Catalan Studies [Catalan: Institut d'Estudis Catalans], April 2007
• “zeta”, in Gran Diccionari de la Llengua Catalana, Grup Enciclopèdia Catalana, 2025
• “zeta” in Diccionari normatiu valencià, Acadèmia Valenciana de la Llengua.
• “zeta” in Diccionari català-valencià-balear, Antoni Maria Alcover and Francesc de Borja Moll, 1962.

From the Ancient Greek ζῆτα (zêta).

• IPA^(key): /ˈtsetɑ/, [ˈts̠e̞t̪ɑ̝]
• IPA^(key): /ˈzetɑ/, [ˈze̞t̪ɑ̝]
• Rhymes: -etɑ
• Syllabification^(key): ze‧ta
• Hyphenation^(key): ze‧ta

zeta

1. The name of the Latin-script letter Z/z.

• ceta

From the Ancient Greek ζῆτα (zêta).

• Audio:

  (file)

zeta m (plural zetas)

1. zee/zed (name of the letter Z, z)

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

zeta

1. The name of the Latin-script letter Z/z.

• seta

• IPA^(key): /ˈsɛːta/
• Rhymes: -ɛːta
• Homophone: seta

zeta f (genitive singular zetu, nominative plural zetur)

1. The name of the Latin-script letter Z/z.
2. zeta (Greek letter)

From the Latin zēta, from Ancient Greek ζῆτα (zêta), from Hebrew זין (zayin).

• IPA^(key): ^*/ˈd͡zɛ.ta/
• Rhymes: -ɛta
• Hyphenation: zè‧ta

zeta m or f (invariable)

1. The name of the Latin-script letter Z/z.; zed, zee
2. the name of the Greek script letter Ζ/ζ; zeta

• dalla a alla zeta

• (Latin-script letter names) lettera; a, bi, ci, di, e, effe, gi, acca, i, gei / i lunga, cappa, elle, emme, enne, o, pi, cu, erre, esse, ti, u, vu / vi, doppia vu, ics, ipsilon / i greca, zeta

• (Classical Latin) IPA^(key): [ˈzeː.ta]
• (modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA^(key): [ˈd̪͡z̪ɛː.t̪a]

From the Ancient Greek ζῆτα (zêta).

zēta f (indeclinable)

1. The name of the Greek letter zeta (Ζ, ζ).
2. The name of the letter Z.

• (Latin-script letter names) littera; ā, bē, cē, dē, ē, ef, gē, hā / *acca, ī, kā, el, em, en, ō, pē, kū, er, es, tē, ū, ix / īx / ex, ȳ / ī graeca / ȳpsīlon, zēta

• “zeta”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• "zeta", in Charles du Fresne du Cange’s Glossarium Mediæ et Infimæ Latinitatis (augmented edition with additions by D. P. Carpenterius, Adelungius and others, edited by Léopold Favre, 1883–1887)
• zeta in Gaffiot, Félix (1934) Dictionnaire illustré latin-français, Hachette.
• Basil Lanneau Gildersleeve, Latin Grammar (3rd ed., 1895), 1:

  The Latin names for the letters… For Y the sound was used, for Z the Greek name (zēta).

In third- and fourth-century writings of the Late Latin period, Z often represented word-initial prevocalic di.

zēta f (genitive zētae); first declension

1. (Late Latin) manuscript variant of diaeta

First-declension noun.

• dzeta (uncommon)

Borrowed from Ancient Greek ζῆτα (zêta).

• Hyphenation: ze‧ta

zeta m (plural zetas)

1. zeta (name of the Greek letter Ζ, ζ)

• zê

Borrowed from French zèta.

zeta m (plural zeta)

1. zeta

From the Ancient Greek ζῆτα (zêta).

zȇta n (Cyrillic spelling зе̑та)

1. zeta; the Greek letter Ζ, ζ

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

zeta (Cyrillic spelling зета)

1. genitive/accusative singular of zet

• IPA^(key): /ˈθeta/ [ˈθe.t̪a] (Spain)
• IPA^(key): /ˈseta/ [ˈse.t̪a] (Latin America, Philippines)

• Audio (Spain):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -eta
• Syllabification: ze‧ta
• Homophone: (Latin America) seta

From Old Spanish ceda, from Latin zēta or its etymon, Ancient Greek ζῆτα (zêta).

zeta f (plural zetas)

1. the letter Z
2. zeta; the Greek letter Ζ, ζ

   Synonyms: dseda, dseta

Borrowed from Ancient Greek θῆτα (thêta).

zeta f (plural zetas)

1. theta; the Greek letter Θ, θ

   Synonyms: theta, tita

• “zeta”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.8, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 10 December 2024

Borrowed from Spanish zeta, the Spanish name of the letter Z / z, from Latin zēta or Ancient Greek ζῆτα (zêta).

• (Standard Tagalog) IPA^(key): /ˈzeta/ [ˈzɛː.t̪ɐ]
  • IPA^(key): (with nativization) /ˈseta/ [ˈsɛː.t̪ɐ]
• Rhymes: -eta
• Syllabification: ze‧ta

zeta (Baybayin spelling ᜐᜒᜆ) (historical)

1. the name of the Latin-script letter Z/z, in the Abecedario

   Synonym: (in the Filipino alphabet) zi