parry

verb

par·​ry ˈper-ē 

ˈpa-rē

parried; parrying

intransitive verb

1

: to ward off a weapon or blow

parried forcefully and knocked his opponent's sword out of his hand

2

: to evade or turn aside something

can parry and thrust … without losing the thread of his argument

—Stewart Cockburn

transitive verb

1

: to ward off (something, such as a blow)

parried the thrust of his opponent's sword

2

: to evade especially by an adroit answer

parried the question

parry noun

Did you know?

In the The Princess Bride, William Goldman’s 1973 comedic novel later made into a popular film of the same name, there is swashbuckling galore, as in the famous showdown between the mysterious man in black and the Spanish swordsman Inigo Montoya: “The man in black was slowly being forced toward a group of large boulders, for Inigo was anxious to see how well he moved when quarters were close, when you could not thrust or parry with total freedom.” To parry is to ward off a weapon or blow; indeed, parrying is as important to fencing as sticking one’s opponent with the pointy end. The word parry was borrowed from the French verb parer, meaning “to ward off” or “to avert,” and was first used in English in the late 17th century. It didn’t take long for parry to gain a figurative meaning of “to evade or turn aside something,” as when someone disarms a verbal sparring partner with a well-timed rejoinder. Montoya, for instance, parries the criminal Vizzini’s doubt that the man in black can catch up to them (“Inconceivable!”) with the sharp response “You keep using that word! … I don’t think it means what you think it does.”

Examples of parry in a Sentence

He parried the thrust of his opponent's sword.

He parried and then threw a punch.

She cleverly parried the reporters' questions.

Recent Examples on the Web

Movies At Telluride, ‘Conclave’ pleases, even if other Oscar hopefuls aren’t ready for prime time Sept. 1, 2024 Early on, Callas parried these inquisitions with humor. —Amy Nicholson, Los Angeles Times, 28 Nov. 2024

When Isak’s shot is parried by Carlos Miguel, Joe Willock follows up to finish. —Chris Waugh, The Athletic, 28 Aug. 2024

Democrats were shaken to watch Biden stumble his way through, mixing up names and figures, losing his train of thought, failing to parry Trump’s lies or give coherent descriptions of his own accomplishments and vision for a second term. —Brian Bennett, TIME, 21 July 2024

Vance parried every Walz thrust with the indisputable fact that Harris has been vice president for three and a half years. —Frank Scheck, The Hollywood Reporter, 3 Sep. 2019

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from French parer "to ward off, avert" (perhaps directly from the plural imperative parez), going back to Middle French, probably borrowed from Italian parare "to prepare, adorn, avert, shield, keep out," going back to Latin parāre "to supply, provide, make ready" — more at pare

First Known Use

1671, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1

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Kids Definition

parry

verb

par·​ry ˈpar-ē 

parried; parrying

1

: to turn aside skillfully : deflect

parry a blow

2

: evade sense 1

parry an embarrassing question

parry noun