parry
/ˈpæɹ.i/verb, noun
parry is spelled P-A-R-R-Y: 5 letters and 2 syllables. It appears 2.8 times per million words in written English, the 16,228th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a verb, parry means “To avoid, deflect, or ward off (an attack, a blow, an argument, etc.)” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in parry?
| Letters | 5: P-A-R-R-Y |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 2.8 times per million words; the 16,228th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Pairs people search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); Bing searches in the United States: the average month from September 2025 to August 2026 (Microsoft Advertising keyword data through DataForSEO, read September 30, 2026).
How common is parry?
Parry appears 2.8 times per million words in written English, the 16,228th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce parry?
- /ˈpæɹ.i/
Parry has 2 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-parry.wav, LL-Q1860_(eng)-Wodencafe-parry.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Words people confuse with parry
Word pairs people search, with the monthly searches for “a vs b” (G: Google, B: Bing, United States).
Sources: Google and Bing searches (September 2025 to August 2026, through DataForSEO); English Wiktionary (homophones, alternative spellings).
Forms of parry
- parries present, singular, he/she/it, plural
- parrying participle, present
- parried participle, past
- parree
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does parry mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
verb
- 1
To avoid, deflect, or ward off (an attack, a blow, an argument, etc.).
noun
- 1
A defensive or deflective action; an act of parrying.
- 2
A simple defensive action designed to deflect an attack, performed with the forte of the blade.
- 3
A defensive move intended to change the direction of an incoming strike to make it miss its intended target, rather than block and absorb it; and typically performed with an open hand in a downward or sideways slapping motion.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Parry in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | parer , parade |
| German | parieren, abwehren , Parade |
| Portuguese | parar , parada |
| Spanish | parar, desviar, rechazar, bloquear, rebatir, baraustar |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does parry come from?
From earlier parree, from Middle English *parree, *paree, from Old French paree (“preparation, ceremony, parade”), from Medieval Latin parāta (“preparation, parade”), from parāre (“to ward off, guard, defend, prepare, get ready”). More at pare. The English verb is taken from the noun. Doublet of parade. Alternative etymology derives the verb parry from French parez, the imperative form of parer (“to fend off”), ultimately from the Medieval Latin parāre. See above.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).