par

¹ American  

[pahr] / pɑr /

noun

1. Finance.

   1. the legally established value of the monetary unit of one country in terms of that of another using the same metal as a standard of value.

   2. the state of the shares of any business, undertaking, loan, etc., when they may be purchased at the original price issue par or at their face value nominal par.

2. an equality in value or standing; a level of equality.

   The gains and the losses are on a par.

3. an average, usual, or normal amount, degree, quality, condition, standard, or the like.

   above par;

   to feel below par.

4. Golf.  the number of strokes set as a standard for a specific hole or a complete course.

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adjective

1. average or normal.

2. Finance.  at or pertaining to par.

   the par value of a bond.

verb (used with object)

parred, parring

1. Golf.  to equal par on (a hole or course).

idioms

1. at par,  (of a share) purchasable at issue par or nominal par.

2. par for the course,  exactly what one might expect; predictable; typical.

   They were late again, but that's par for the course.

par ² American  

[pahr] / pɑr /

adjective

Insurance.

1. of or relating to participating insurance.

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par- ³ American  

1. variant of para- before a vowel.

   parenchyma.

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par. ⁴ American  

abbreviation

1. paragraph.

2. parallel.

3. parenthesis.

4. parish.

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par ¹ British  

/ pɑː /

noun

1. an accepted level or standard, such as an average (esp in the phrase up to par )

2. a state of equality (esp in the phrase on a par with )

3. finance the established value of the unit of one national currency in terms of the unit of another where both are based on the same metal standard

4. commerce

   1. See par value

   2. the condition of equality between the current market value of a share, bond, etc, and its face value (the nominal par ). This equality is indicated by at par, while above ( or below ) par indicates that the market value is above (or below) face value

5. golf an estimated standard score for a hole or course that a good player should make

   par for the course was 72

6. not feeling or performing as well as normal

7. an expected or normal occurrence or situation

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adjective

1. average or normal

2. (usually prenominal) commerce of or relating to par

   par value

par. ² British  

abbreviation

1. paragraph

2. parenthesis

3. parish

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Par. ³ British  

abbreviation

1. Paraguay

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par- ⁴ British  

prefix

1. a variant of para- 1

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par More Idioms  

More idioms and phrases containing par

• below par
• on a par with
• up to par

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Etymology

Origin of par¹

First recorded in 1600–10; from Latin pār “matching, equal”

Origin of par²

Shortening of participating

Example Sentences

Now surveys show they are closer to one-third of the population, roughly on par with Shiite Muslims and Sunni Muslims.

From The Wall Street Journal

Overall, the district’s enrollment is on par with last year’s, according to a spokesperson.

From Los Angeles Times

The city's population density is more than 7,100 people per square kilometre of land, on par with packed metropolises like Tokyo.

From Barron's

Nvidia coming out against concerns about its business could be “dangerous,” or it’s par for the course in getting its message through to Wall Street, Angel said.

From MarketWatch

“That is often where the real value comes from, as the cruise fares we have seen are on par with typical discounts cruise lines run during other times of the year,” he said.

From MarketWatch