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parr

1 American  
[pahr] / pɑr /

noun

  • parrs,
    plural
  • parr
    plural
  1. a young salmon, having dark crossbars on its sides.

  2. the young of certain other fishes, as the codfish.


Parr 2 American  
[pahr] / pɑr /

noun

  1. Catherine. Catherine Parr.


Parr 1 British  
/ pɑː /

noun

  1. Catherine. 1512–48, sixth wife of Henry VIII of England

"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

parr 2 British  
/ pɑː /

noun

  1. a salmon up to two years of age, with dark spots and transverse bands

"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

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

Etymology

Origin of parr

First recorded in 1765–70; origin uncertain

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

Jennifer Kril, living rivers officer at the trust, said: "It's been years in the making, but finding salmon parr here confirms we have achieved the extraordinary."

From BBC Nov. 13, 2025

The young fish, known as parr, have been spawned in the River Ecclesbourne, near the site of the former Postern Mill in Turnditch.

From BBC Nov. 13, 2025

Developmental stages—the transitions between the eggs, fry, parr, smolt, and returning salmon—are governed by changes in water temperature, and warmer waters can disrupt the salmon’s life cycle by triggering stunted growth or premature hatching.

From The New Yorker Aug. 7, 2019

Each year, Maine’s Department of Marine Resources and United States Fish and Wildlife Service stocks the rivers and streams with millions of salmon eggs and fry and thousands of parr and smolts.

From The New Yorker Aug. 7, 2019

Even in the second year after DDT enters a stream, a foraging salmon parr would have trouble finding anything more than an occasional small stonefly.

From "Silent Spring" by Rachel Carson

In a study published in ACS Chemical Neuroscience, Schultz and co-first author Lauren Parr, a Ph.D. student in the Department of Pharmacology, developed a compound that selectively inhibits TAOK-1.

From Science Daily Aug. 3, 2026

Parr, who lived in Bristol up until his death, rose to prominence in the mid-1980s, with his study of working class people on holiday in New Brighton in Merseyside.

From BBC Jun. 28, 2026

Asked by Parr if he has a team of people to help with his trading, he responded: “Just me.”

From MarketWatch Jun. 17, 2026

“They’re decorative. They make good pets. They talk. People just have an affinity for parrots,” said Parr, who also co-wrote “Parrots: A Guide to Parrots of the World.”

From Los Angeles Times Apr. 25, 2026

“Miss Myrt was not one of us,” Preacher Parr recalled.

From "The Teacher’s Funeral" by Richard Peck

At first the requests were sartorial: three tailored suits, three parrs of Nunn-Bush shoes, shirts, ties, cologne and toothbrushes.

From Time Magazine Archive

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