. Merriam-Webster Law Dictionary. Merriam-Webster. 1996. Latin, which goes, as, from the feminine singular ablative of who wer â more at who dictionary of West`s Encyclopedia of American Law. 2005. See the full definition of qua in the Dictionary of English Language Learners “Qua.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/qua. Accessed January 9, 2022. Short dictionary of legal terms and abbreviations (mainly American). In which direction? Who? No, we`re not paraphrasing the lines of Abbott and Costello`s old routine “Who`s first?” We refer to the etymology of qua, a term that comes to us from Latin.
It can be translated as “in what way” or “like” and is a derivative of the Latin which means “who”. Qua has served as a preposition to English since the 17th century. It`s a clever but practical little word that led a 20th-century utility writer to comment: “Qua is sometimes seen as affected or pretentious, but it conveys economic significance.” . . . .