parlous

[ pahr-luhs ]
See synonyms for parlous on Thesaurus.com
adjective
  1. perilous; dangerous: parlous times;a cold and parlous winter.

  2. Obsolete. clever; shrewd.

adverb
  1. Rare. to a large extent; greatly.

Origin of parlous

1
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, variant of perlous, shortening of perilous

Other words from parlous

  • par·lous·ly, adverb
  • par·lous·ness, noun

Words Nearby parlous

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How to use parlous in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for parlous

parlous

/ (ˈpɑːləs) archaic, or jocular /


adjective
  1. dangerous or difficult

  2. cunning

adverb
  1. extremely

Origin of parlous

1
C14 perlous, variant of perilous

Derived forms of parlous

  • parlously, adverb
  • parlousness, noun

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