parataxis

[ par-uh-tak-sis ]

/ ˌpær əˈtæk sɪs /

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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.

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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

Words nearby parataxis

parasynthesis, parasyntheton, parataniwha, parataxic, parataxic distortion, parataxis, paratenic host, paratha, parathion, Para-thor-mone, parathyroid

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