parse

[ pahrs, especially British, pahrz ]

/ pɑrs, especially British, pɑrz /

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verb (used with object), parsed, pars·ing.

to analyze (a sentence) in terms of grammatical constituents, identifying the parts of speech, syntactic relations, etc.

to describe (a word in a sentence) grammatically, identifying the part of speech, inflectional form, syntactic function, etc.

to analyze (something, as a speech or behavior) to discover its implications or uncover a deeper meaning: Political columnists were in their glory, parsing the president's speech on the economy in minute detail.

Computers. to analyze (a string of characters) in order to associate groups of characters with the syntactic units of the underlying grammar.

verb (used without object), parsed, pars·ing.

to be able to be parsed; lend itself to parsing: Sorry, but your concluding paragraph simply doesn't parse.

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Origin of parse

First recorded in 1545–55; from Latin pars “part,” as in pars ōrātiōnis “part of speech”

OTHER WORDS FROM parse

pars·a·ble, adjectivepars·er, nounmis·parse, verb (used with object), mis·parsed, mis·pars·ing.un·parsed, adjective

Words nearby parse

parry, Parry Channel, Parry's disease, pars, pars amorpha, parse, parsec, Parsee, Parseeism, parser, pars granulosa

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

How to use parse in a sentence

It’s worth it, then, to spend some time parsing through what, exactly, the reporting says, what the specific denials are, and how they match with the facts as we know them.
Did Trump call US war dead “losers” and “suckers”? The controversy, explained.|Alex Ward|September 4, 2020|Vox
In a new column, VOSD Editor in Chief Scott Lewis parses the decision and slams officials for refusing to prioritize the physical reopening of schools.
Morning Report: Barrios Failed to Disclose Income|Voice of San Diego|September 1, 2020|Voice of San Diego
We just need to parse what “winning” means in terms of biology.
The Secret to a Long, Healthy Life Is in the Genes of the Oldest Humans Alive|Shelly Fan|August 10, 2020|Singularity Hub
Because neurons aren’t packed together the same way between different brain regions, this provides a way to parse the brain into areas that can be further studied.
These Scientists Just Completed a 3D ‘Google Earth’ for the Brain|Shelly Fan|August 5, 2020|Singularity Hub

To understand the effects of Covid-19 going forward, however, economists within and outside the US government are parsing very different sets of data.
The data to focus on instead of GDP to understand where the economy is going|Karen Ho|July 31, 2020|Quartz

British Dictionary definitions for parse

parse

/ (pɑːz) /

verb grammar

to assign constituent structure to (a sentence or the words in a sentence)

(intr) (of a word or linguistic element) to play a specified role in the structure of a sentence

computing to analyse the source code of a computer program to make sure that it is structurally correct before it is compiled and turned into machine code

Derived forms of parse

parsable, adjectiveparsing, noun

Word Origin for parse

C16: from Latin pars (orātionis) part (of speech)

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

parse

Origin of parse

OTHER WORDS FROM parse

Words nearby parse

Words related to parse

How to use parse in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for parse

Derived forms of parse

Word Origin for parse