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alpha

alpha

2 6.6
Used to describe an early test version of a product before full release
  • adjective
  • /ˈæl.fə/
  • Specialized
translation icon : versión alfa
  • We launched the alpha version of the app to gather user input before the official release.

Examples

  • This software is still in the alpha stage, which means there may be some errors to fix.

  • It's the hand physics lab in pre alpha right now.

  • Alpha detail, clear to proceed.

  • Alpha detail, proceed directly through the decontamination... to the inner airlock.

  • The game is currently in alpha testing, so players can provide feedback on bugs and features.

Idioms

alpha and omega
  • Literature
1 8.1

The whole of something, including its beginning and its end

Compounds

alpha wave
  • Specialized
3 6.4

A brain rhythm you have when you are awake and relaxed, often when you close your eyes or meditate

alpha dog
  • Informal
2 7.0

A confident person who takes charge and leads a group that others follow

alpha particle
  • Specialized
2 5.8

A small positively charged part of an atom with two protons and two neutrons released in radioactive decay

alpha-linolenic acid
  • Specialized
1 6.7

A type of healthy fat that your body needs, found in plant oils like flaxseed and canola

alpha test
  • Specialized
1 5.3

An early trial of new software run by the developers to find major bugs

Cronbach's alpha
  • Specialized
8.0

A number that shows how well survey or test questions measure the same thing

A dominant ape who leads and controls other apes

alpha blocker
  • Specialized
5.2

A medicine that relaxes muscles in blood vessels and the prostate to lower blood pressure and help pass urine

alpha brass
  • Specialized
8.1

A type of brass metal that bends easily without heating

alpha bronze
  • Specialized
8.1

A metal made from copper and tin used for parts that are easy to shape

alpha-beta brass
  • Specialized
8.8

A strong brass made with more zinc, used for cast parts and hot work

alpha-ferrite
  • Specialized
8.4

A magnetic form of iron that appears in steel below 906°C

alpha-blocker
  • Specialized
5.5

A drug that relaxes certain muscles to lower blood pressure and ease symptoms of an enlarged prostate

alpha-interferon
  • Specialized
5.2

A medicine that helps the body's defenses fight viruses and some cancers

alpha-Fe
  • Specialized
9.1

A magnetic form of iron that exists at normal temperatures

alpha-lipoprotein
  • Specialized
7.2

A particle in the blood that carries cholesterol and helps protect the heart

alpha-naphthol
  • Specialized
9.9

A chemical used to make dyes and to test for sugars in labs

alpha-naphthol test
  • Specialized
8.3

A chemical test that shows a violet ring when sugar is in a liquid

alpha-tocopherol
  • Specialized
7.2

A form of vitamin E in plant oils that protects your body cells

alpha-Terpinene
  • Specialized
9.9

A natural chemical from some plant oils that people use to give perfume or flavor

Alpha Crucis
  • Specialized
9.9

A very bright star at the bottom of the Southern Cross

alpha decay
  • Specialized
7.7

A radioactive process where a large atom sends out an alpha particle and becomes another element

alpha fetoprotein
  • Specialized
6.5

Protein made in an unborn baby that when high can show birth defects such as spina bifida

alpha fetoprotein
  • Specialized
6.8

Protein measured in adults to help find and check some cancers, especially liver cancer

alpha globulin
  • Specialized
7.0

A group of blood proteins that move fastest in an electric lab test

alpha methyl dopa
  • Specialized
6.1

A medicine that lowers high blood pressure, often used during pregnancy

alpha iron
  • Specialized
8.1

A form of iron that is magnetic and stable below 906°C

alpha radiation
  • Specialized
6.1

Radiation made of heavy particles that radioactive materials send out

alpha privative
  • Specialized
9.9

Letters added to the start of a Greek word to show not or without

alpha ray
  • Specialized
7.5

A stream of tiny particles given off by some radioactive materials

alpha receptor
  • Specialized
7.8

A part on nerve cells that makes blood vessels and muscles in organs tighten

alpha rhythm
  • Specialized
6.8

A pattern of brain waves at eight to twelve times per second in people who are awake but relaxed

alpha software
  • Specialized
7.2

An early, unfinished version of a computer program tested mainly by the people who made it

4.7

A drug that relaxes certain muscles to lower blood pressure and help urine flow in men with an enlarged prostate

A medicine that relaxes blood vessel and bladder muscles to lower blood pressure and help pass urine

7.4

A protein on nerve and blood vessel cells that reacts to body chemicals to make vessels narrow and muscles contract

alpha-adrenoceptor
  • Specialized
9.3

Receptor on certain cells that reacts to adrenaline and narrows blood vessels

How Developed

stable
473 2.3
beta
  • Specialized
2 5.1
alpha
  • Specialized
2 6.6
initial
599 3.4

Surface Forms

alpha positive

Etymology

Alpha for an early product stage comes from the Greek letter alpha, which means 'first', and the same root is in alphabet, so an 'alpha' release is the very first test version.