paragraph

American  

[par-uh-graf, -grahf] / ˈpær əˌgræf, -ˌgrɑf /

noun

1. a distinct portion of written or printed matter dealing with a particular idea, usually beginning with an indentation on a new line.

2. a paragraph mark.

3. a note, item, or brief article, as in a newspaper.

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verb (used with object)

paragraphs, present (3rd person singular) paragraphed, past participle, past paragraphing present participle

1. to divide into paragraphs.

2. to write or publish paragraphs about, as in a newspaper.

3. to express in a paragraph.

paragraph British  

/ ˈpærəˌɡrɑːf, -ˌɡræf, ˌpærəˈɡræfɪk /

noun

1. (in a piece of writing) one of a series of subsections each usually devoted to one idea and each usually marked by the beginning of a new line, indentation, increased interlinear space, etc

2. printing the character ¶, used as a reference mark or to indicate the beginning of a new paragraph

3. a short article in a newspaper

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verb

1. to form into paragraphs

2. to express or report in a paragraph

paragraph Cultural  

1. A basic unit of prose. It is usually composed of several sentences that together develop one central idea. The main sentence in a paragraph is called the topic sentence.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• well-paragraphed
  adjective
• paragraphically
  adverb
• paragraphic
  adjective
• paragraphism
  noun
• subparagraph
  noun
• paragraphistical
  adjective
• unparagraphed
  adjective

Conjugated Forms

Present

• has paragraphed
  perfect 3rd person singular
• have paragraphed
  perfect
• is paragraphing
  progressive 3rd person singular
• are paragraphing
  progressive
• am paragraphing
  progressive 1st person singular
• have been paragraphing
  perfect progressive
• paragraphs
  singular 3rd person
• has been paragraphing
  perfect progressive 3rd person singular
• paragraphing
  participle

Past

• had paragraphed
  perfect
• were paragraphing
  progressive plural
• was paragraphing
  progressive singular
• had been paragraphing
  perfect progressive
• paragraphed
  simple
• paragraphed
  participle

Future

• will paragraph
  simple
• will have paragraphed
  perfect
• will be paragraphing
  progressive
• will have been paragraphing
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of paragraph

1515–25; earlier paragraphe < Greek paragraphḗ marked passage; see para- ¹, graph

Explanation

A full page of text with no visible breaks is hard to read. That’s why you break your ideas up into groups of sentences, called paragraphs. Each paragraph contains logically connected sentences about one main idea. If your teacher asks you to write a paragraph on learning vocabulary words, you will write several sentences that describe how to learn vocabulary. Each sentence will add to the topic and will connect one to the other. The length of a paragraph will vary. Your teacher might require just three or four sentences to accurately describe vocabulary learning. Unless he’s a fan of James Joyce. Then your paragraph might need to extend for pages and pages.

Example Sentences

I had to pause momentarily while writing this paragraph just to wipe a tear from the corner of my eye.

From Salon • Jun. 6, 2026

SpaceX also described what it called the “the largest actionable total addressable market” in human history, totaling $28.5 trillion, in the first paragraph on Page 11 of the filing.

From MarketWatch • May 22, 2026

Take a look again at the preceding paragraph.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 18, 2026

The Washington Post mentioned it in the 36th and final paragraph of its front-page story on McVeigh’s arrest.

From Slate • Apr. 19, 2026

She never in a million years would have figured out how to decode James’s paragraph.

From "Book Scavenger" by Jennifer Chambliss Bertman

Related Words

• clause
• portion
• quotation
• reading
• section
• sentence
• text
• transition
• verse