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paraphrase

[par-uh-freyz]
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noun
  1. a restatement of a text or passage giving the meaning in another form, as for clearness; rewording.
  2. the act or process of restating or rewording.
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verb (used with object), par·a·phrased, par·a·phras·ing.
  1. to render the meaning of in a paraphrase: to paraphrase a technical paper for lay readers.
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verb (used without object), par·a·phrased, par·a·phras·ing.
  1. to make a paraphrase or paraphrases.
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Origin of paraphrase

1540–50; < Middle French < Latin paraphrasis < Greek paráphrasis. See para-1, phrase
Related formspar·a·phras·a·ble, adjectivepar·a·phras·er, nounmis·par·a·phrase, verb, mis·par·a·phrased, mis·par·a·phras·ing.un·par·a·phrased, adjective

Synonyms

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1. See translation. 3. summarize; explain.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words

transcriberephraserehashexplanationsummaryrenderingversionrestatementrenditiondigestrephrasingrenderrecapitulaterewordrestatesummarizedisambiguate

Examples from the Web for paraphrase

Contemporary Examples

Historical Examples

  • It was really only a paraphrase of the old story of the grub and the butterfly.

    The Fortune Hunter

    Louis Joseph Vance

  • The paraphrase which has just been given of it goes beyond the actual words of Plato.

  • “She is so nervous,” Maria said loyally, but her paraphrase availed nothing.

    Olive in Italy

    Moray Dalton

  • "It was a paraphrase," he answered, the smile still upon his face.

    St. Cuthbert's

    Robert E. Knowles

  • He is not disturbed by the diversity of methods exhibited in the Paraphrase.

British Dictionary definitions for paraphrase

paraphrase

noun
  1. an expression of a statement or text in other words, esp in order to clarify
  2. the practice of making paraphrases
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verb
  1. to put (something) into other words; restate (something)
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Derived Formsparaphrastic (ˌpærəˈfræstɪk), adjective

Word Origin

C16: via French from Latin paraphrasis, from Greek, from paraphrazein to recount
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

Word Origin and History for paraphrase

n.

1540s, from Middle French paraphrase (1520s), from Latin paraphrasis "a paraphrase," from Greek paraphrasis "a free rendering," from paraphrazein "to tell in other words," from para- "beside" (see para- (1)) + phrazein "to tell" (see phrase (n.)).

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v.

c.1600, from paraphrase (n.) or from French paraphraser. Related: Paraphrased; paraphrasing.

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
paraphrase in Culture

paraphrase

A restatement of speech or writing that retains the basic meaning while changing the words. A paraphrase often clarifies the original statement by putting it into words that are more easily understood.

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The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.