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parabasis

[ puh-rab-uh-sis ]
/ pəˈræb ə sɪs /
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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.
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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. 2023

How to use parabasis in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for parabasis

parabasis
/ (pəˈræbəsɪs) /

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
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