{"id":7395,"date":"2022-08-17T18:14:08","date_gmt":"2022-08-17T18:14:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/?p=7395"},"modified":"2022-08-17T18:14:08","modified_gmt":"2022-08-17T18:14:08","slug":"pa-meaning","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/pa-meaning\/","title":{"rendered":"Pa \u2013 Meaning, Origin and Usage"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Did a friend just address their father as \u2018<em>Pa<\/em>?\u2019 This post unpacks the meaning and origin of this paternal expression.<\/p>\n<h2>Meaning<\/h2>\n<p><strong>The expression \u2018<em>Pa<\/em>\u2019 is a colloquialism of the word \u2018<em>father<\/em>.\u2019 It\u2019s a term of endearment held by children towards their \u2018pater\u2019 and a shortened form of \u2018<em>papa<\/em>.\u2019 \u2018<em>Pa<\/em>\u2019 refers to your biological father or an adopted parent. Both grown and small children will use the expression when referring to their father.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>\u2018<em>Pa<\/em>\u2019 can also refer to the abbreviation for the state of Pennsylvania in the US. \u2018Pa.\u2019 is a common abbreviation for the state used when writing an address. Pa. refers to the state of Pennsylvania, encompassing the region's 21 cities and 67 counties.<\/p>\n<p>These cities include Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Allentown, Reading, Erie, Upper Darby, Scranton, Bethlehem, Lower Merion, Bensalem Township,\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Lancaster, Mill Creek, Lower Paxton, Haverford, Harrisburg, York, Wilkes-Barre, Altoona, Hempfield, State College, and Penn Hills.<\/p>\n<p>\u2018<em>PA<\/em>\u2019 is also an abbreviation for \u2018<em>Personal assistant<\/em>.\u2019<\/p>\n<p>However, the most common use of \u2018<em>pa<\/em>\u2019 is as a colloquialism for father.<\/p>\n<h2>Example Usage<\/h2>\n<p>\"I wonder how much it costs to refurbish a roof? I should ask my pa. He'll know where I can get the best estimate.\"<\/p>\n<p>\"Hey, Pa, Ma told me to come and call you for dinner. She wants to know if you're coming or if she should put your plate in the oven.\"<\/p>\n<p>\"I live in Pittsburgh, Pa. It's a great city full of nightlife and exciting things to do. It's one of the strongest manufacturing economies in the country.\"<\/p>\n<p>\"I have the best pa in the world. He showed me how to fish and hunt, and he's always there for advice when I need him.\"<\/p>\n<p>\"I don't think we can handle moving to Scranton, Pa. The winters are too cold, and I'm not used to that weather. Let's stay in Texas where it's warm, please.\"<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-medium wp-image-7396\" src=\"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/Pa-300x156.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"156\" srcset=\"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/Pa-300x156.jpg 300w, https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/Pa.jpg 459w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/> <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-7397\" src=\"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/Pa2-271x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"150\" height=\"166\" srcset=\"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/Pa2-271x300.jpg 271w, https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/Pa2.jpg 461w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px\" \/><\/p>\n<h2>Origin<\/h2>\n<p>The expression \u2018Pa\u2019 originates from the Latin \u2018papa,\u2019 a child\u2019s word describing their father. It\u2019s similar to the Greek version, \u2018pappa,\u2019 meaning \u2018o father.\u2019 However, the French were the first to introduce \u2018papa\u2019 as a word for father in the 1680s.<\/p>\n<p>The English use of \u2018pa\u2019 appears in 1804 as a colloquialism for \u2018father.\u2019 Language experts assume it comes from the relationship between England and France, resulting in many French words being adapted for the English language.<\/p>\n<p>The phrase started as a way for kids from wealthy households to address their father, spreading into the common vernacular by the end of the 1800s. The word spread throughout the English and British communities, crossing the pond to the Americas in the late 1800s.<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Pa. Meaning\" width=\"512\" height=\"288\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/hUttArJ8ik8?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<h2>Phrases Similar to Pa<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>Father.<\/li>\n<li>Dad.<\/li>\n<li>Pennsylvania.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>Phrases Opposite to Pa<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>Ma.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>What is the Correct Saying?<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>Pa<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>Ways People May Say Pa Incorrectly<\/h2>\n<p>Using \u2018Pa\u2019 as a reference to your grandfather is incorrect. In this case, your grandfather would be your \u2018grandpa.\u2019 Using the abbreviation \u2018PA\u2019 to refer to any other state other than Pennsylvania is incorrect.<\/p>\n<h2>Acceptable Ways to Phrase Pa<\/h2>\n<p>You can use the term \u2018Pa\u2019 when referring to your father. It\u2019s more of a European expression, and most Americans will call their father \u2018dad\u2019 as a colloquialism. Canadians prefer using \u2018pa\u2019 when referencing their father due to the influence of British and French culture on the nation.<\/p>\n<p>Pa can also refer to the state of Pennsylvania, and it\u2019s an abbreviation for the state. You can use this abbreviation in written communications where you don\u2019t want to write out the full word or want to avoid a spelling mistake. The term is well understood by all Americans as an abbreviation for Pennsylvania.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p class=\"mb-2\">Did a friend just address their father as \u2018Pa?\u2019 This post unpacks the meaning and origin of this paternal expression. Meaning The expression \u2018Pa\u2019 is a colloquialism of the word \u2018father.\u2019 It\u2019s a term of endearment held by children towards their \u2018pater\u2019 and a shortened form of \u2018papa.\u2019 \u2018Pa\u2019 refers to your biological father or [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7395"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7395"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7395\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8023,"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7395\/revisions\/8023"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7395"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7395"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7395"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}