# parenthesis

> English word · Noun · IPA /pəˈɹɛnθəsɪs/ · frequency rank #45,571

## Definitions
1. A clause, phrase or word which is inserted (usually for explanation or amplification) into a passage which is already grammatically complete, and usually marked off with brackets, commas or dashes.
2. Either of a pair of brackets, especially (mainly US) round brackets, ( and ) (used to enclose parenthetical material in a text).
3. A digression; the use of such digressions.
4. Such brackets as used to clarify expressions by grouping those terms affected by a common operator, or to enclose the components of a vector or the elements of a matrix.

## Etymology
Learned borrowing from Late Latin parenthesis (“addition of a letter to a syllable in a word”), itself borrowed from Ancient Greek παρένθεσις (parénthesis, “insertion”). By surface analysis, par- + en- + thesis.

## Easily confused with
- **parentheses** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/parentheses-vs-parenthesis)

## Common misspellings (17)
`aprenthesis`, `paernthesis`, `parenhtesis`, `parennthesis`, `parentehsis`, `parentheiss`, `parenthesiss`, `parenthessi`, `parenthessis`, `parenthhesis`, `parenthseis`, `parentthesis`, `paretnhesis`, `parnethesis`, `parrenthesis`, `pparenthesis`, `praenthesis`

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/parenthesis