Parry
/ˈpæri/
verbnounB2
Definition
Parry means to stop or avoid something, usually an attack or a difficult question, by quickly moving or answering in a way that protects you. It is often used in fighting or conversations where someone tries to defend themselves by redirecting the attack.
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See It in Action
To block or deflect an attack, especially with a weapon
- •The knight parried the enemy’s sword with his shield.
- •She parried the blow just in time to avoid injury.
- •In fencing, parrying is an important defensive skill.
To avoid answering a question or dealing with a problem by skillfully changing the subject or giving a clever answer
- •The politician parried questions about the scandal.
- •He parried the difficult question with a joke.
- •She parried the criticism by explaining her point calmly.
Make It Stick
- ✓Think of 'parry' like 'block,' but more active and skillful, like a quick move to stop something coming at you
- ✓Picture two people fencing with swords, and one moves their sword to stop the other’s strike without hurting them
- ✓It’s the feeling when you quickly answer a tricky question to avoid trouble or when you dodge a ball thrown at you
- ✓Sounds like 'parry' → imagine a pair of swords crossing quickly to stop an attack
- ✓In stories, heroes often parry attacks to protect themselves and then respond with their own move
- ✓NOT like 'hit' (attack directly), parry is about defense and avoiding damage
- ✓NOT like 'dodge' (move away completely), parry means to stop or push back the attack instead of just moving away
- ✓NOT like 'ignore,' parry involves active response, not just not paying attention
Try Other Words
- •Deflect: to make something change direction (Use when the attack or question is turned away rather than stopped directly)
- •Dodge: to move quickly to avoid something (Use when avoiding by moving away instead of stopping)
- •Evade: to avoid answering or facing something (Use in conversations or questions when you avoid giving a direct answer)
- •Block: to stop something from coming through (Use for general stopping, less skillful than parry)
Unboxing
- •Word parts: (no clear prefix or suffix) — root word 'parry'
- •Etymology: From Old French 'parrer' meaning to ward off or defend, from Late Latin 'parare' meaning to prepare or provide
- •Historical development: First used in English in the 16th century in fencing and fighting contexts to mean warding off an attack
- •Modern usage: Used in both physical defense (fighting) and metaphorical defense (avoiding questions or problems)
- •Key insight: Parry always involves an active, skillful defense, not just passive avoidance
Reflect & Connect
•How can the idea of parrying apply to everyday conversations, not just fighting?
•Can you think of a time when you had to parry a difficult question or problem? How did you do it?
Fill in the blanks
1.The fencer parried the opponent’s strike by ___ his sword quickly to the side.
2.When asked about the mistake, she parried the question with a ___ instead of a direct answer.
3.Parry is different from dodge because dodge means to ___ away, while parry means to ___ or stop the attack.
4.He tried to parry the criticism by ___ the topic to something else.
5.In fencing, a good parry usually comes just ___ the opponent’s attack hits.
6.To successfully parry, you need to ___ the direction of the attack quickly and skillfully.
7.When politicians parry questions, they often try to avoid ___ directly about the problem.