parenthesis Meaning & Definition
What Does Parenthesis Mean?
Parenthesis is a noun that means A clause, phrase, or word which is inserted into a grammatically complete passage of text for explanation or as an aside, and usually marked off with brackets, commas, or dashes. It can also mean An aside serving as an explanation; also, an afterthought.
Parenthesis at a Glance
| Part of speech | noun |
|---|---|
| Pronunciation | /pəˈɹɛnθɪsɪs/ |
| Synonyms | digression, aside and divagation |
| Plural | parentheses |
Parenthesis Definition (Noun)
- A clause, phrase, or word which is inserted into a grammatically complete passage of text for explanation or as an aside, and usually marked off with brackets, commas, or dashes.
- An aside serving as an explanation; also, an afterthought.
- The making of asides or explanations in grammatically complete passages of text.
- Either of a pair of brackets, chiefly the round brackets "(" and ")" but occasionally also the square brackets "[" and "]", which are used together to enclose parenthetical material in a text.
- Either of a pair of curved lines or shapes resembling a round bracket.
- Either of a pair of brackets used to clarify an expression by grouping terms affected by a common operator, or to enclose the components of a vector or the elements of a matrix.
- An intervening event; an interlude, an interruption.
- A departing or straying from the main activity or subject; deviation, digression; an instance of this; an irrelevant interruption.
Synonyms of Parenthesis
Parenthesis synonyms and antonyms →Word Forms & Grammar
parenthesis (countable and uncountable, plural parentheses)
Origin of Parenthesis
Learned borrowing from Late Latin parenthesis (“rhetorical device where an aside or example is included”), borrowed from Koine Greek πᾰρένθεσῐς (părénthesĭs, “insertion; putting in beside, injection; (grammar) parenthesis”), from Ancient Greek πᾰρεντῐ́θημῐ (părentĭ́thēmĭ) + -σις (-sis), from Ancient Greek πᾰρᾰ- (pără-, prefix meaning ‘beside’) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *preh₂- (“before, in front”) and/or from its etymon *per- (“before, in front”)) + ἐν (en, “at; in; on”) (from Proto-Indo-European *h₁én (“in”)) + θέσῐς (thésĭs, “arrangement, placement, setting”) (from τῐ́θημῐ (tĭ́thēmĭ, “to place, put, set”) (ultimate from Proto-Indo-European *dʰeh₁- (“to do; to place, put”)) + -σῐς (-sĭs, suffix forming abstract nouns or nouns of action, process, or result)), modelled after Koine Greek πᾰρεντῐ́θημῐ (părentĭ́thēmĭ, “to put in beside; to mix up”).[1]
Questions People Ask About Parenthesis
What part of speech is parenthesis?
Parenthesis is a noun.
What is another word for parenthesis?
You can replace parenthesis with words such as digression, aside and divagation. See the full list of parenthesis synonyms and antonyms.
What is the plural of parenthesis?
The plural of parenthesis is parentheses.