parabasis

[puh-rab-uh-sis]

noun, plural pa·rab·a·ses

[puh-rab-uh-seez] /pəˈræb əˌsiz/.

(in ancient Greek drama) a choral ode addressed to the audience, especially of comedy, and independent of the action of the play: usually following the agon and, in the earliest forms of comedy, serving often to end the play.

Origin of parabasis

1810–20; < Greek parábasis a going aside, digression; see para-¹, basis

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for parabasis

Historical Examples of parabasis

They were also remarkable for the absence of the parabasis and chorus.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 7, Slice 6
Various
Parabasis, pa-rab′a-sis, n. the chief of the choral parts in ancient Greek comedy, usually an address from the poet to the public.
Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 3 of 4: N-R)
Various
In the comedies, like the masques in other days, sarcastic remarks on the government came to be made; this was the Parabasis.
History Of Ancient Civilization
Charles Seignobos

British Dictionary definitions for parabasis

parabasis

noun plural -ses (-ˌsiːz)

(in classical Greek comedy) an address from the chorus to the audience

Word Origin for parabasis

C19: from Greek, from parabanein to step forward

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012