parallel

American  

[par-uh-lel, -luhl] / ˈpær əˌlɛl, -ləl /

adjective

1. extending in the same direction, equidistant at all points, and never converging or diverging.

   Parallel rows of trees lined two ends of the parking lot.

2. having the same direction, course, nature, or tendency; corresponding; similar; analogous.

   Canada and the United States have many parallel economic interests.

   Synonyms:

   alike, like

   Antonyms:

   unique, unlike, divergent

3. Geometry.

   1. (of straight lines) lying in the same plane but never meeting no matter how far extended.

   2. (of planes) having common perpendiculars.

   3. (of a single line, plane, etc.) equidistant from another or others (usually followed by to orwith ).

4. Electricity. consisting of or having component parts connected in such a way that all positive terminals are connected to one point and all negative terminals are connected to a second point, the same voltage being applied to each component.

   a parallel circuit.

5. Music.

   1. (of two voice parts) progressing so that the interval between them remains the same.

   2. (of a tonality or key) having the same tonic but differing in mode.

      A major and A minor are parallel keys.

6. Computers.

   1. of or relating to the apparent or actual performance of more than one operation at a time by the same or different devices (distinguished from serial).

      Some computer systems join more than one CPU for parallel processing.

   2. of or relating to the simultaneous transmission or processing of all the parts of a whole, as all the bits of a byte or all the bytes of a computer word (distinguished from serial).

7. Grammar. consisting of matched syntactic elements in corresponding positions.

   In the sentence “I have three cats and two dogs,” “three cats” and “two dogs” are in parallel structure.

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noun

• parallels
  plural

1. a parallel line or plane.

2. anything parallel or comparable to something else in direction, course, nature, or tendency.

3. Also called parallel of latitude.  Geography.

   1. an imaginary circle on the earth's surface formed by the intersection of a plane parallel to the plane of the equator, bearing east and west and designated in degrees of latitude north or south of the equator along the arc of any meridian.

   2. the line representing this circle on a chart or map.

4. something identical or similar in essential respects; match; counterpart.

   It's a struggle to diagnose a case history without a known parallel.

   Synonyms:

   equivalent, body double, twin, duplicate, mate, equal

   Antonyms:

   opposite

5. correspondence or analogy.

   These two cases have some parallel with each other.

6. a comparison of things as if regarded side by side.

7. Electricity. an arrangement of the components, such as resistors, of a circuit in such a way that all positive terminals are connected to one point and all negative terminals are connected to a second point, the same voltage being applied to each component.

8. Fortification. a trench cut in the ground before a fortress, parallel to its defenses, for the purpose of covering a besieging force.

9. Printing. a pair of vertical parallel lines (‖) used as a mark for reference.

10. Theater. a trestle for supporting a platform parallel top.

verb (used with object)

• parallels,
  present (3rd person singular)
• paralleled,
  past participle,  past
• parallelled,
  past participle,  past (especially British)
• paralleling,
  present participle
• parallelling
  present participle (especially British)

1. to provide or show a parallel for; match.

2. to go or be in a parallel course, direction, etc., to.

   The road parallels the river.

3. to form a parallel to; be equivalent to; equal.

4. to show the identity or similarity of; compare.

5. to make parallel.

idioms

1. in parallel,

   1. at the same time or in conjunction.

      When you are at school, your growth and change is taking place in parallel with fellow students who are also growing and changing.

   2. Electricity. (of the components of a circuit) arranged in such a way that all positive terminals are connected to one point and all negative terminals are connected to a second point, the same voltage being applied to each component.

parallel British  

/ ˈpærəˌlɛl /

adjective

1. separated by an equal distance at every point; never touching or intersecting

   parallel walls

2. corresponding; similar

   parallel situations

3. music

   1. Also: consecutive.  (of two or more parts or melodies) moving in similar motion but keeping the same interval apart throughout

      parallel fifths

   2. denoting successive chords in which the individual notes move in parallel motion

4. grammar denoting syntactic constructions in which the constituents of one construction correspond to those of the other

5. computing operating on several items of information, instructions, etc, simultaneously Compare serial

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noun

1. maths one of a set of parallel lines, planes, etc

2. an exact likeness

3. a comparison

4. Also called: parallel of latitude.  any of the imaginary lines around the earth parallel to the equator, designated by degrees of latitude ranging from 0° at the equator to 90° at the poles

5. 1. a configuration of two or more electrical components connected between two points in a circuit so that the same voltage is applied to each (esp in the phrase in parallel )

   2. ( as modifier ) See series

      a parallel circuit

6. printing the character (∥) used as a reference mark

7. a trench or line lying in advance of and parallel to other defensive positions

verb

1. to make parallel

2. to supply a parallel to

3. to be a parallel to or correspond with

   your experience parallels mine

parallel Scientific  

/ păr′ə-lĕl′ /

1. Of or relating to lines or surfaces that are separated everywhere from each other by the same distance.

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1. Any of the imaginary lines encircling the Earth's surface parallel to the plane of the equator, used to represent degrees of latitude.

2. See illustration at longitude

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• nonparallel
  adjective
• parallelable
  adjective
• parallelless
  adjective
• subparallel
  adjective
• unparallel
  adjective
• parallelly
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• parallels
  plural

Participles

• paralleling
  present
• parallelling
  present
• paralleled
  past
• parallelled
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• parallel
  simple
• parallels
  simple
• have paralleled
  perfect
• have parallelled
  perfect
• has paralleled
  perfect
• has parallelled
  perfect
• am paralleling
  progressive
• am parallelling
  progressive
• are paralleling
  progressive
• are parallelling
  progressive
• is paralleling
  progressive
• is parallelling
  progressive
• have been paralleling
  perfect progressive
• have been parallelling
  perfect progressive
• has been paralleling
  perfect progressive
• has been parallelling
  perfect progressive

Past

• paralleled
  simple
• parallelled
  simple
• had paralleled
  perfect
• had parallelled
  perfect
• was paralleling
  progressive
• was parallelling
  progressive
• were paralleling
  progressive
• were parallelling
  progressive
• had been paralleling
  perfect progressive
• had been parallelling
  perfect progressive

Future

• will parallel
  simple
• will have paralleled
  perfect
• will have parallelled
  perfect
• will be paralleling
  progressive
• will be parallelling
  progressive
• will have been paralleling
  perfect progressive
• will have been parallelling
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of parallel

First recorded in 1540–50; from Latin parallēlus, from Greek parállēlos “side by side,” from par- par- + állēlos “one another” ( see allo-)

Explanation

In math, parallel means two lines that never intersect — think of an equal sign. Figuratively, parallel means similar, or happening at the same time. A story might describe the parallel lives of three close friends. Parallel is from Greek parallēlos, from the prefix para-, "beside," plus allēlōn, "of one another," from allos, "other." As a noun, a parallel is a way in which things resemble each other — you might draw parallels between the Vietnam War and the U.S. invasion of Iraq. In specialized use, a parallel can mean one of the imaginary circles on the surface of the Earth that are parallel to the equator — the 49th parallel divides the U.S. and Canada.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

parallel parallels paralleled parallelled paralleling parallelling

She based her decision on "a parallel analysis of several channels that have been posting truthful information for a long time."

From Barron's ● Aug. 16, 2026

The license is for phase 2 of the field and is expected to be delivered in parallel with phase 1.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 14, 2026

Angles close to 90° appeared repeatedly, as did sets of parallel lines.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 9, 2026

Jesus College, where Arday is a fellow, has said it is launching its own process "parallel" to the university's investigation.

From BBC ● Aug. 5, 2026

I slid over this wall and began running along it, parallel to the road.

From "My Brother Sam is Dead" by James Lincoln Collier and Christopher Collier

There are lots of parallels between these two stories: family members getting separated from loved ones, then turning to the courts, specifically to habeas corpus petitions, to claim that the separation is unlawful.

From Slate ● Jul. 27, 2026

“There are some parallels here that I think we need to think about because you always want the caboose going fast, slower than the front of the engine, and that’s not what’s happening,” he said.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 23, 2026

Eschewing grander historical parallels, Vaez calls the current situation a "plastic moment", pregnant with possibility as old adversaries contemplate a different set of relationships.

From BBC ● Jul. 5, 2026

It’s not just our recognition of the real-life parallels that make Jolie so touching in “Couture” — it’s that ineffable star power she’s possessed for so long.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 26, 2026

I kill the headlights and drive along the road that parallels the river.

From "Love, Hate & Other Filters" by Samira Ahmed

This bittersweet ending is paralleled alongside the story of the patient and Katharine.

From Salon ● Jul. 28, 2026

The rise in stocks and gold has paralleled the expansion of the Fed’s balance sheet, which, in colloquial terms, is how the central bank prints money.

From Barron's ● May 15, 2026

The story is also paralleled metafictionally by “Cheating,” whose success is attributed to its unabashed amorality.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 8, 2026

He added their resurgence had been paralleled by revivals in woodlarks and Dartford warblers, "which are also showing promising increases in numbers".

From BBC ● Mar. 16, 2026

A long covered breezeway paralleled the main structure and connected the two wings.

From "The Great Santini" by Pat Conroy

The education of Robert Maynard Hutchins parallelled and sped a slower re-education of the U.S. itself.

From Time Magazine Archive

Circumstances suddenly combined to strangle the last flickering breath of patience in Will, and the slender barriers were swept away in such a storm as even Phoebe’s wide experience of him had never parallelled.

From Children of the Mist by Eden Phillpotts

The main stem of the flowing Potomac is parallelled on the Maryland shore by the C. & O. Canal in Federal ownership, a unique resource.

From The Nation's River A report on the Potomac from the U.S. Department of the Interior by United States. Dept. of the Interior.

The High Altar, which is almost in the middle of the Dome, is of a Magnificence not to be parallelled.

From The Memoirs of Charles-Lewis, Baron de Pollnitz, Volume II Being the Observations He Made in His Late Travels From Prussia thro' Germany, Italy, France, Flanders, Holland, England, &C. in Letters to His Friend. Discovering Not Only the Present State of the Chief Cities and Towns; but the Characters of the Principal Persons at the Several Courts. by Karl Ludwig von P?llnitz

This revolution in the tempo of production and capital accumulation was parallelled by a like revolution in transportation and communication by land, water, and eventually by air and in space.

From Civilization and Beyond Learning from History by Scott Nearing

"Conversely, tourism can involve negative experiences that potentially lead to health problems, paralleling the process of promoting entropy increase. A prominent example is the public health crisis of COVID-19."

From Science Daily ● May 4, 2026

"I have never in my experience heard a victim's voice telling you what is happening, what is going on in their life that's paralleling what you are obtaining and looking at evidentially," she said.

From BBC ● Nov. 20, 2023

But Lachman realized that the grain also brought “tension to the surface of the image,” paralleling the repressive qualities of the characters in both “Mildred Pierce” and “Carol.”

From New York Times ● Apr. 18, 2023

The best beginner trail in the network is the Cold Creek Trail, which starts at the Nordic center and heads east paralleling Keechelus Lake.

From Seattle Times ● Dec. 1, 2022

They had barely been in the saddle for an hour that morning when Kaede caught sight of the wolves running through the trees about fifty feet away, roughly paralleling the path.

From "Huntress" by Malinda Lo

Now his spin brought him around to face it, and he saw it was parallelling his course.

From Badge of Infamy by Lester Del Rey

Once he thought he saw a group of gorilla creatures parallelling their course back amongst the forest growth, but if Naida observed the animals, she paid no attention.

From Astounding Stories of Super-Science, December 1930 by Various

Related Words

• analogy
• comparison
• corollary
• resemblance
• similarity