parade
Americannoun
-
a large public procession, usually including a marching band and often of a festive nature, held in honor of an anniversary, person, event, etc.
-
a military ceremony involving the formation and marching of troop units, often combined with saluting the lowering of the flag at the end of the day.
-
the assembly of troops for inspection or display.
-
a place where troops regularly assemble for inspection or display.
-
a continual passing by, as of people, objects, or events.
the parade of pedestrians past the office; the parade of the seasons.
-
an ostentatious display.
to make a parade of one's religious beliefs.
-
Chiefly British.
-
a group or procession of promenaders.
-
a promenade.
-
-
Fortification. the level space forming the interior or enclosed area of a fortification.
-
Fencing. a parry.
verb (used with object)
verb (used without object)
-
to march in a procession.
-
to promenade in a public place, especially in order to show off.
-
to assemble in military order for display.
-
to assume a false or misleading appearance.
international pressure that parades as foreign aid.
noun
-
an ordered, esp ceremonial, march, assembly, or procession, as of troops being reviewed
on parade
-
Also called: parade ground. a place where military formations regularly assemble
-
a visible show or display
to make a parade of one's grief
-
a public promenade or street of shops
-
a successive display of things or people
-
the interior area of a fortification
-
a parry in fencing
-
to hinder someone's enjoyment; upset someone's plans
-
-
on display
-
showing oneself off
-
verb
-
to walk or march, esp in a procession (through)
to parade the streets
-
(tr) to exhibit or flaunt
he was parading his medals
-
(tr) to cause to assemble in formation, as for a military parade
-
(intr) to walk about in a public place
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
-
paradernoun
-
paradefuladjective
-
paradelessadjective
-
paradelikeadjective
-
unparadedadjective
-
paradinglyadverb
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
paradesimple
-
paradessimple
-
have paradedperfect
-
has paradedperfect
-
am paradingprogressive
-
are paradingprogressive
-
is paradingprogressive
-
have been paradingperfect progressive
-
has been paradingperfect progressive
Past
-
paradedsimple
-
had paradedperfect
-
was paradingprogressive
-
were paradingprogressive
-
had been paradingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of parade
1650–60; < French, Middle French < Spanish parada a stop, stopping place, noun use of feminine of parado, past participle of parar to stop, end < Latin parāre to set. See compare, parry, -ade 1
Explanation
A parade is a group of people marching in ceremony, celebration, or protest. Often a parade involves fire trucks, costumed adults throwing candy to children, baton twirlers, and members of the armed forces. Parade is also a verb, meaning to walk or march ostentatiously. When your sister first brings home her prom dress, she might parade around the living room after putting it on so everyone can see it. As a noun parade is an event in which a whole lot of people march in the streets — they could be wearing prom dresses, but more likely they're celebrating of a holiday or taking part in a military action.
Vocabulary lists containing parade
St. Patrick's Day Vocabulary: Words With Irish and Gaelic Roots
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
Memorial Day Words
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
Party Parlance for Mardi Gras
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
The attack took place several hundred metres away from the end of the CSD parade route and the event's main stage at Berlin's iconic Brandenburg Gate.
From Barron's ● Jul. 26, 2026
The parade was canceled, and authorities said they were searching for one or more suspects.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 26, 2026
The attack took place several hundred metres away from the end of the tightly guarded CSD parade route and the event's main stage at Berlin's iconic Brandenburg Gate.
From Barron's ● Jul. 26, 2026
Earlier on Saturday, huge crowds took part in a parade throughout the city, which ended near the park for a series of events in the evening.
From BBC ● Jul. 25, 2026
She was still sorting out how she felt about what happened at the parade.
From "Caterpillar Summer" by Gillian McDunn
Some bonfires across Northern Ireland were lit ahead of the Orange Order's Twelfth of July parades.
From BBC ● Jul. 12, 2026
The 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence should be more than fireworks, parades and patriotic songs.
From Salon ● Jul. 10, 2026
July 4 fell during a record-breaking heat wave that upended the parades, block parties and barbecues that traditionally mark Independence Day.
From Barron's ● Jul. 6, 2026
Local historical societies scheduled town square readings of the Declaration of Independence, hired bands to play patriotic tunes, organized parades and set up themed baking contests.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 3, 2026
Lieutenant Scheisskopf cared very deeply about winning parades and about bringing Clevinger up on charges before the Action Board for conspiring to advocate the overthrow of the cadet officers Lieutenant Scheisskopf had appointed.
From "Catch-22" by Joseph Heller
When the U.S. flag was paraded onto the pitch during the World Cup opening ceremony in Mexico City last week, jeers rained down from the crowd.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 16, 2026
On the balcony of his house in Indonesia, Muhammad Yusuf swayed to blaring music and waved a replica of the World Cup trophy as hundreds paraded past, many decked out in Argentina's colours.
From Barron's ● Jun. 12, 2026
“I don’t want to be paraded around and be a sideshow,” he said.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 18, 2026
He was paraded through Heathrow Airport with his wrists in shackles, and escorted onto a plane by two FBI agents.
From Slate ● Apr. 19, 2026
Usually, they just paraded Diko around the stage a few times, so this was a break from the routine.
From "Beasts of Prey" by Ayana Gray
The dancers, costumed in their Saturday evening black-and-white vintage best, added to the parading splendor.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 22, 2026
It must have made an impression on a teenage boy parading and drilling in a uniform on the outskirts of West Point.
From Slate ● Jun. 11, 2026
Viral videos of Knicks fans parading in front of Madison Square Garden started trending during each playoff game.
From MarketWatch ● May 26, 2026
"But parading our military hardware shows our strength on the world stage. Perhaps we should be displaying something."
From BBC ● May 7, 2026
She didn't wait for the other girls to introduce themselves before parading about the room as if she was ensuring she'd picked the best bed.
From "The Marvellers" by Dhonielle Clayton
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
