Dictionary.com

parataxis

[ par-uh-tak-sis ]
/ ˌpær əˈtæk sɪs /
Save This Word!

noun Grammar.
the placing together of sentences, clauses, or phrases without a conjunctive word or words, as Hurry up, it is getting late! I came—I saw—I conquered.
QUIZ
ALL IN FAVO(U)R OF THIS BRITISH VS. AMERICAN ENGLISH QUIZ
There's an ocean of difference between the way people speak English in the US vs. the UK. Are your language skills up to the task of telling the difference? Let's find out!
Question 1 of 7
True or false? British English and American English are only different when it comes to slang words.
Compare hypotaxis.

Origin of parataxis

1835–45; <New Latin <Greek parátaxis an arranging in order for battle. See para-1, -taxis

OTHER WORDS FROM parataxis

par·a·tac·tic [par-uh-tak-tik], /ˌpær əˈtæk tɪk/, par·a·tac·ti·cal, adjectivepar·a·tac·ti·cal·ly, adverb
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

British Dictionary definitions for parataxis

parataxis
/ (ˌpærəˈtæksɪs) /

noun
the juxtaposition of clauses in a sentence without the use of a conjunction, as for example None of my friends stayed — they all left early

Derived forms of parataxis

paratactic (ˌpærəˈtæktɪk), adjectiveparatactically, adverb

Word Origin for parataxis

C19: New Latin from Greek, from paratassein, literally: to arrange side by side, from para- 1 + tassein to arrange
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
FEEDBACK