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• par
  par

  noun
• par-
  par-

  variant of para- before a vowel.
• par.
  par.

  abbreviation

  paragraph.
• Par.
  Par.

  abbreviation

  Paraguay

par

¹ American  

[pahr] / pɑr /

noun

pars plural

1. Finance.

   1. the legally established value of the monetary unit of one country in terms of that of another using the same metal as a standard of value.

   2. the state of the shares of any business, undertaking, loan, etc., when they may be purchased at the original price issue par or at their face value nominal par.

2. an equality in value or standing; a level of equality.

   The gains and the losses are on a par.

3. an average, usual, or normal amount, degree, quality, condition, standard, or the like.

   above par;

   to feel below par.

4. Golf. the number of strokes set as a standard for a specific hole or a complete course.

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adjective

1. average or normal.

2. Finance. at or pertaining to par.

   the par value of a bond.

verb (used with object)

parred, parring

1. Golf. to equal par on (a hole or course).

idioms

1. at par, (of a share) purchasable at issue par or nominal par.

2. par for the course, exactly what one might expect; predictable; typical.

   They were late again, but that's par for the course.

par ² American  

[pahr] / pɑr /

adjective

Insurance.

1. of or relating to participating insurance.

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par- ³ American  

1. variant of para- before a vowel.

   parenchyma.

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par. ⁴ American  

abbreviation

1. paragraph.

2. parallel.

3. parenthesis.

4. parish.

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par ¹ British  

/ pɑː /

noun

1. an accepted level or standard, such as an average (esp in the phrase up to par )

2. a state of equality (esp in the phrase on a par with )

3. finance the established value of the unit of one national currency in terms of the unit of another where both are based on the same metal standard

4. commerce

   1. See par value

   2. the condition of equality between the current market value of a share, bond, etc, and its face value (the nominal par ). This equality is indicated by at par, while above ( or below ) par indicates that the market value is above (or below) face value

5. golf an estimated standard score for a hole or course that a good player should make

   par for the course was 72

6. not feeling or performing as well as normal

7. an expected or normal occurrence or situation

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adjective

1. average or normal

2. (usually prenominal) commerce of or relating to par

   par value

par. ² British  

abbreviation

1. paragraph

2. parenthesis

3. parish

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Par. ³ British  

abbreviation

1. Paraguay

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par- ⁴ British  

prefix

1. a variant of para- 1

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par More Idioms  

More idioms and phrases containing par

• below par
• on a par with
• up to par

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• pars
  plural

Etymology

Origin of par¹

First recorded in 1600–10; from Latin pār “matching, equal”

Origin of par²

Shortening of participating

Explanation

In golf, par is the average number of times an excellent player needs to hit the ball, either for one particular hole or for the entire course. You might describe the fourth hole, for example, as being par five. If a golf course is par sixteen, it takes a really good golfer about sixteen strokes to get her ball into the final hole. From the sports meaning of par, it's come to also mean "average" or "equivalent," especially in phrases like "under par," or "worse than expected," and "par for the course," or "what is normal given the circumstances." This definition actually came first, in the form of the Latin par, "equal."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

par par- par. Par. pars parred parring

At 25-under par, he bested Scheffler by three strokes and set the tournament scoring record.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 27, 2026

No one outside the Marvel fan ecosystem is arguing that “Avengers: Endgame,” one of the highest-grossing films of all time, is a cinematic masterpiece on par with the all-time great classics.

From Salon ● Jul. 22, 2026

It didn’t look like this would be Fox’s week when he entered the third round at even par.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 19, 2026

He casts himself as a problem-solver and negotiator par excellence.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 19, 2026

Regardless, Reggie’s brain, and his performance, was right on par with most test subjects.

From "A Deadly Wandering: A Mystery, a Landmark Investigation, and the Astonishing Science of Attention in the Digital Age" by Matt Richtel

Docking can be called for in recipes where par- or blind-baking the crust is required.

From Washington Post ● Jun. 3, 2022

But when par- or blind-baking, not every type of crust needs to be docked.

From Washington Post ● Jun. 3, 2022

We need to par- ticipate, and we need to be heard.

From MSNBC ● Sep. 9, 2014

But if the individual par- ticipants in the  boom went unnoticed, their impact  did not.

From MSNBC ● Jun. 4, 2014

It must be true because Uncle Herman use to sleep in our house all the time when he was out of werk on the old sofa in the par- ler.

From "Flowers for Algernon" by Daniel Keyes

“Firstly, we bowled and fielded well. We thought they were par. … De Leede’s innings was awesome, just needed someone to be with him.”

From Washington Times ● Oct. 6, 2023

Billy Horschel was the only player in the 39-man field who failed to break par. shooting 76.

From Seattle Times ● Jan. 5, 2023

“I feel it’s justified if the quality keeps going up and is up to par. The same goes for any candy, costumes and decorations out there, which I feel have also gone up price-wise.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 6, 2022

"When an enemy starts to act irrationally, you need to make sure the defences of your own country are up to par. In the Canadian Arctic, that's a problem - we haven't done enough."

From BBC ● Mar. 24, 2022

At the first command the odd numbers ride 4 yards directly to the front, regulating on the right, and all the troopers execute the movements and take the final position prescribed in par. 192a-a.

From Manual for Noncommissioned Officers and Privates of Cavalry of the Army of the United States 1917 to be also used by Engineer Companies (Mounted) for Cavalry Instruction and Training by Department, U. S. War

For "Ind. Par. i. 543.," read "Ind. Par. i 343."

From Notes and Queries, Number 61, December 28, 1850 by Various

For the which thing straightway the Pope appointed as legate to follow up this Par. xii.

From Villani's Chronicle Being Selections from the First Nine Books of the Croniche Fiorentine of Giovanni Villani by Villani, Giovanni

To these we can only reply that, if it is not implied by Par., viii.

From Dante: His Times and His Work by Butler, Arthur John

This Count Guido Vecchio took to wife the daughter of M. Bellincione Berti of the Rovignani, which was the Par. xv.

From Villani's Chronicle Being Selections from the First Nine Books of the Croniche Fiorentine of Giovanni Villani by Villani, Giovanni

Of the Ghibellines of the said sesto, the house of the Scolari which were by origin fellows to the Bondelmonti, the house of Par. xvi.

From Villani's Chronicle Being Selections from the First Nine Books of the Croniche Fiorentine of Giovanni Villani by Villani, Giovanni

“I’m trying to keep the same mindset,” Morikawa said after six birdies, nine pars and three bogeys left him in a six-way tie for fifth at three under.

From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 19, 2026

"It's tough. There is wind. There are going to be bad shots. You got to make some gritty pars in these conditions," he said.

From Barron's ● Jan. 18, 2026

Volatility matters too—because of the format, a player who birdies half the holes and bogeys the other half can be more valuable than someone who cards 18 pars.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 26, 2025

After five straight pars to start, Woad made six birdies and one bogey across the next 10 holes.

From BBC ● Aug. 1, 2025

Then he used his frontalis, pars lateralis, to raise the outer half of his eyebrows.

From "Blink" by Malcolm Gladwell

Making his tournament debut, Bridgeman carded four birdies on the back nine, the last at No. 17, to pull even with McIlroy at five under and parred the 18th.

From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 19, 2026

When play resumed, Korda had a three-stroke lead over South Korea's Amy Yang, who parred 17 and 18 on Sunday to seize second on 206 with a closing 69.

From Barron's ● Feb. 1, 2026

DeChambeau, who started the day two back, parred the first hole to forge the tie.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 13, 2025

Before his ace, McIlroy had picked up a birdie on the 12th hole and parred the rest of his opening holes.

From BBC ● Jan. 30, 2025

Compare the past participles osed, 971, mixed, 2533, parred, 2439, gadred, 2577; reft, 1367, wend, 2138, hyd, 1059; told, 1036, sold, 1638, wrouth = wrout, 1352.

From The Lay of Havelok the Dane by Unknown

Kuchar and Villegas each shot 66, with the 45-year-old Kuchar parring the final four holes.

From Seattle Times ● Nov. 5, 2023

He had a solid start Sunday, parring the first and third holes, both par-fours, while birdieing the par-five second hole to move to six under for the tournament.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 10, 2022

“If you spare a lot, it’s like parring all the holes,” said Straub, summoning another golf analogy.

From New York Times ● Apr. 11, 2017

He hit every fairway after that, picking up that crucial birdie at No. 14 and parring his way home.

From Washington Times ● Jul. 18, 2014

I ended up birdieing 14, parring 15, hit a bad drive on 16 and made another bogey, then parred in.

From Golf Digest ● Jun. 9, 2014