ama

¹ American  

[ah-mah] / ˈɑ mɑ /

noun

plural

amas, ama

1. a Japanese diver, usually a woman, who tends underwater oyster beds used in the cultivation of pearls.

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-ama ² American  

1. variant of -orama, occurring as the final element in compounds when the first element is a disyllable ending in - r, used so that the entire word maintains the same number of syllables as panorama .

   rollerama; Futurama.

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A.M.A. ³ American  

abbreviation

1. American Management Association.

2. American Medical Association.

3. American Motorcycle Association.

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AMA British  

abbreviation

1. American Medical Association

2. Australian Medical Association

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Etymology

Origin of ama

From Japanese, dating back to 1945–50, of uncertain origin

Example Sentences

Nada de tonterías de ama de casa, nada de esas cosas reaccionarias””.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 19, 2026

He added in the comments: "WOULDVE been the ama performance but they cancelled me for reasons unknown."

From Salon • Nov. 21, 2022

Sixty-one-year-old Tahi Nepia is calmly paddling his outrigger canoe, called a waka ama in his Indigenous Māori language, as it is buffeted from side to side.

From Seattle Times • Aug. 14, 2022

Novo poderia ter se aposentado há 18 anos, mas ficou além da conta porque ama seu trabalho.

From Science Magazine • May 26, 2022

As the cloud cleared away there stood the most beautiful princess any one had ever seen or dreamed of between the old ama and the prince in the fisherman clothes.

From Tales of Giants from Brazil by Eells, Elsie Spicer