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• parr
  parr

  noun

  a young salmon, having dark crossbars on its sides.
• Parr
  Parr

  noun

  Catherine. Catherine Parr.

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.

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Parr ² American  

[pahr] / pɑr /

noun

1. Catherine. Catherine Parr.

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Parr ¹ British  

/ pɑː /

noun

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

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parr ² British  

/ pɑː /

noun

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

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• parr
  plural
• parrs
  plural

Etymology

Origin of parr

First recorded in 1765–70; origin uncertain

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

parr Parr parrs

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

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

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

Heading toward the wide parr of the river where trees grouped themselves in families darkening the earth below.

From "Sula" by Toni Morrison

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

Aaron Laws, head teacher at Lacock Primary School, said Parr "obviously got that sense of community and something special" about the village.

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

We did not wake up in the morning and ask ourselves, “What will Wayne Parr wear today?” or “How will Wayne Parr act today?”

From "Stargirl" by Jerry Spinelli

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

From Time Magazine Archive