parry
verb (used with object)
to ward off (a thrust, stroke, weapon, etc.), as in fencing; avert.
parry
1 American
[par-ee]
/ ˈpær i /
verb (used with object)
-
parries,
present (3rd person singular)
-
parried,
past participle, past
-
parrying
present participle
verb (used without object)
-
parries,
present (3rd person singular)
-
parried,
past participle, past
-
parrying
present participle
noun
-
parries
plural
-
an act or instance of parrying, as in fencing.
-
a defensive movement in fencing.
Parry
2
American
[par-ee]
/ ˈpær i /
noun
-
Milman, 1902–35, U.S. classical scholar and philologist.
-
William Edward, 1790–1855, English Arctic explorer.
parry
1
British
/ ˈpærɪ /
verb
-
to ward off (an attack) by blocking or deflecting, as in fencing
-
(tr) to evade (questions), esp adroitly
noun
-
an act of parrying, esp (in fencing) using a stroke or circular motion of the blade
-
a skilful evasion, as of a question
Parry
2
British
/ ˈpærɪ /
noun
-
Sir ( Charles ) Hubert ( Hastings ). 1848–1918, English composer, noted esp for his choral works
-
Sir William Edward. 1790–1855, English arctic explorer, who searched for the Northwest Passage (1819–25) and attempted to reach the North Pole (1827)
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
parrysimple
-
parriessimple
-
have parriedperfect
-
has parriedperfect
-
am parryingprogressive
-
are parryingprogressive
-
is parryingprogressive
-
have been parryingperfect progressive
-
has been parryingperfect progressive
Past
-
parriedsimple
-
had parriedperfect
-
was parryingprogressive
-
were parryingprogressive
-
had been parryingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of parry
1665–75; < French parez, imperative of parer to ward off, set off < Latin parāre to set. See parade
Explanation
Sword fighters thrust and parry. To thrust is to try to stab, and to parry is to avoid getting stabbed by blocking a thrust. Though it comes from fencing, parry is also handy in dodgeball and awkward conversations The word parry means to block or evade a movement, like in fencing, but it can also refer to an evasion that is verbal rather than physical. If someone asks you who you have a crush on, but you don’t want to answer, parry the question — change the subject or ask a question in return. When used in this way parry retains its sense of defending yourself through evasion.
Vocabulary lists containing parry
The Vocabulary.com Top 1000
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
Lord of the Flies
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
The Lightning Thief
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
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:
The German chancellor is trying to set a new tone with Beijing to parry pressure from the U.S.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 2, 2026
The Japanese prime minister’s resilience in the face of Chinese pressure could also be instructive to so-called middle powers that are searching for a way to parry pressure from both China and the U.S.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 10, 2026
Moving to his left, Smith got both hands to the ball, only to parry in the direction of the slips, who could not grab the rebound.
From BBC ● Dec. 5, 2025
The Belgian goalkeeper was quickly called into action again to parry Joao Palhinha's effort.
From Barron's ● Nov. 8, 2025
She’s touched before she recovers enough to parry.
From "Black Brother, Black Brother" by Jewell Parker Rhodes
Parry said: "Farmers are coping with climate change, change in government support and requirements, high input costs, the changes to inheritance tax relief on farms along with many other things."
From BBC ● Oct. 12, 2026
Haydn Parry: It will be interesting to see how wide receiver Carnell Tate, fourth overall pick by Tennessee, adapts among the big boys.
From BBC ● Sep. 8, 2026
Haydn Parry: Fernando Mendoza worked wonders at Indiana last year.
From BBC ● Sep. 8, 2026
She ordered Winehouse to pay interim payments to each of the women – £569,330 to Parry and £394,521 to Gourlay – within the next two weeks.
From BBC ● Jul. 29, 2026
It said that there had been no reply to signals from the Survey Station, and that John Parry and his companions were presumed missing.
From "The Subtle Knife" by Philip Pullman
Becerra parries by noting as attorney general he sued many of Silicon Valley’s giants.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 1, 2026
Gavin Bazunu parries, but only straight to Anass Zaroury who buries the rebound first-time for the opener.
From BBC ● Feb. 19, 2024
Dr. No parries, in a manner reminiscent of some of our real-life tech billionaires.
From Slate ● Aug. 5, 2023
From there, the story emboldens itself from relatable online stalking to ludicrous plot twists, both of which Reid parries with confidence.
From New York Times ● Jan. 19, 2023
The Obayifo is counting on that, though—it easily dodges my jabs and parries my swipes.
From "Kwame Crashes the Underworld" by Craig Kofi Farmer
He should have saved King's equaliser at his near post, while his initial save for Fulham's second was parried into a dangerous area, allowing Garcia to score.
From BBC ● Aug. 24, 2026
He parried worries about this World Cup with a groovy encouragement:
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 31, 2026
The sequence started with Pedro Porro sending a cross into the box for Dani Olmo, whose shot was parried away by Courtois.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 10, 2026
Their defence was unlocked again when Chasity Grant raced behind Liverpool's backline and played in Kirsty Hanson, while Daly added a third when she pounced on a parried save by Kirby.
From BBC ● Dec. 11, 2025
She stabbed and parried with her right hand, occasionally shooting tomatoes from the cornucopia in her left, while yelling at the suitors, ‘Save yourselves! I’m too dangerous!’
From "Blood of Olympus" by Rick Riordan
Unlike commercial antibiotics, phages evolve alongside their bacterial hosts, dodging and parrying the bacterial response so that for every pathogen, there’s likely a bacteriophage, somewhere, that eats it.
From Salon ● Nov. 20, 2024
He worked side by side with graduate students in a windowless office and lab, shunning computers and calculators and parrying the theoretical abstractions that often dominate the world of physics.
From New York Times ● Sep. 30, 2022
Monaco goalkeeper Alexander Nubel helped salvage a point by turning Baptiste Santamaria’s long-range strike around the post in the 27th and parrying a close-range header from Terrier in the 28th.
From Seattle Times ● Aug. 13, 2022
In “Sifu,” as has been the trend since the “Dark Souls” games have risen in popularity, a key strategy is to put a large emphasis on defense and parrying moves.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 1, 2022
He’s trying to taunt, trick me with his relaxed, almost sloppy parrying.
From "Black Brother, Black Brother" by Jewell Parker Rhodes
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
