parole

Borrowed from Middle French parole (“word, formal promise”), from Old French parole, from Late Latin parabola (“speech”), from Ancient Greek παραβολή (parabolḗ). Doublet of parabola, parable, and palaver.

• enPR: pə-rōlʹ, IPA^(key): /pəˈɹoʊl/
  • (UK) IPA^(key): [p(ʰ)əˈɹəʊɫ]

    • Audio (Southern England):

      (file)

  • (US) IPA^(key): [pʰəˈɹʷoʊɫ], [pʰɹ̩ˈoʊɫ]
• Rhymes: -əʊl
• Hyphenation: pa‧role

parole (usually uncountable, plural paroles)

1. (with on) Originally, one's oath or word of honour, given as a condition of release from custody; now specifically, describing the release of a former prisoner under certain conditions, especially the promise of good behaviour. [from 17th c.]

   He will be on parole for nearly two more years.

   He was released on parole.

2. Conditional release of a prisoner (now especially before the end of a custodial sentence), or the term or state of such release; the system governing such releases. [from 17th c.]
   • 2023 February 16, WCCO Staff, “Julissa Thaler sentenced to life in prison for murdering 6-year-old son, Eli Hart”, in cbsnews.com‎^[1]:

     A Minnesota woman who killed her 6-year-old son will now spend the rest of her life in prison without the possibility of parole.

3. (now historical) A word of honor, especially given by a prisoner of war, to not engage in combat if released. [from 17th c.]
   • 1849–1861, Thomas Babington Macaulay, The History of England from the Accession of James the Second, volume (please specify |volume=I to V), London: Longman, Brown, Green, and Longmans, →OCLC:

     This man had forfeited his military parole.

   • 1926, T.E. Lawrence, Seven Pillars of Wisdom, New York: Anchor, published 1991, page 167:

     In hospital he gave his parole, and was enlarged after paying for the torn blanket.

4. (now rare) A watchword or code phrase; (military) a password given only to officers, distinguished from the countersign, which is given to all guards. [from 18th c.]
   • 1791, James Boswell, Life of Johnson, Oxford, published 2008, page 1143:

     ‘Classical quotation is the parole of literary men all over the world.’

   • 1796, John Stedman, chapter 4, in Narrative of a Five Years’ Expedition,‎^[2], volume 1, London: J. Johnson, page 80:

     […] their parole or watchword, which is orange, distinguishes them from the rebels in any action, to prevent disagreeable mistakes.

5. (linguistics) Language in use, as opposed to language as a system. [from 20th c.]

   Coordinate term: langue

6. (US, immigration law) The permission for a foreigner who does not meet the technical requirements for a visa to be allowed to enter the U.S. on humanitarian grounds.
7. (law) Alternative form of parol.

• parole board
• parolee
• parole officer
• re-parole

• pass-parole
• porte-parole

• Parole (United States immigration) on Wikipedia.Wikipedia

parole (third-person singular simple present paroles, present participle paroling, simple past and past participle paroled)

1. (transitive, law) To release (a prisoner) on the understanding that s/he checks in regularly and obeys the law.
   • 1980 April 12, Lew Lasher, “INS 'Paroles' Australian; Policy Still Unclear”, in Gay Community News, page 1:

     Whitelaw was allowed to continue to San Francisco. There, INS officials assigned Whitelaw a temporary status for "deferred examination," and "paroled" him into the U.S., permitting him to stay for his planned five-week vacation.

2. (intransitive) To be released on parole.
   • 1983 August 20, Dwain Rasmussen, “Personal advertisement”, in Gay Community News, volume 11, number 6, page 23:

     I am a gay guy that likes S&M, and am looking for a master out on the streets to write me in here. I would like to parole to NYC some day if I can.

• Aperol, Lopera

From paroli +‎ -e.

• IPA^(key): /paˈrole/

• Audio:

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ole
• Hyphenation: pa‧ro‧le

parole

1. verbally

Inherited from Middle French parole, from Old French parole, inherited from Vulgar Latin *paraula, from Late Latin, from Latin parabola (“comparison; later, speech”), from Ancient Greek παραβολή (parabolḗ). Doublet of parabole and palabre.

• IPA^(key): /pa.ʁɔl/

• Audio:

  (file)

parole f (plural paroles)

1. (the power of) speech, language (the faculty of using spoken language to communicate or express thought, the usage of this faculty, and the words articulated through its use)

   la parole et l'écriture ― speech and writing

   perdre la parole / perdre l'usage de la parole

   to lose one's ability to speak

   avoir la parole facile ― to speak easily, to be well-spoken

   Les animaux manquent la parole. ― Animals lack speech

2. word(s) utterance, expression (an orally articulated unit of discourse)
3. voice, spoken word
   • 1973, “Paroles… Paroles…”, Leo Chiosso, Giancarlo Del Re, Michaële (lyrics), Gianni Ferrio (music), performed by Dalida and Alain Delon:

     Que tu es belle / Parole, parole, parole / Que tu es belle / Parole, parole, parole, parole, parole / Encore des paroles que tu semes au vent

     You're so beautiful / speech, speech, speech / You're so beautiful / speech, speech, speech, speech, speech / More words that you sow in the wind

4. (in the plural) lyrics, words (of a song)

   les paroles d'une chanson ― the words of a song, lyrics of a song

5. promise, word

   Synonyms: assurance, promesse

   belles paroles ― empty promise(s) (literally, “pretty words”)

   tenir parole ― to keep one's word

   donner sa parole ― to give one's word

   être fidèle à sa parole ― to be true to one's word

   manquer à sa parole ― to break one's word

   revenir sur sa parole ― to go back on one's word

   croire sur parole ― to take one's word

   Il tient parole. ― He keeps his word.

6. floor (the right to speak, as, for example, in a legislative assembly)

   avoir la parole ― to have the floor

   prendre la parole ― to take the floor

   donner, céder, passer, ou laisser la parole à quelqu'un ― to give someone the floor

   couper la parole à quelqu'un, ou lui ôter la parole ― to cut someone off

   Le député a la parole. ― The member has the floor.

• → Dutch: parool
  • → Russian: пароль (parolʹ) (likely)
    • → Eastern Mari: пароль (paroĺ)
• → Haitian Creole: pawòl
• → Romanian: parolă

parole !

1. swear to God!

   Synonyms: ma parole, ma parole d'honneur, parole d'honneur

• “parole” in languefrancaise.net, Bob, dictionnaire de français argotique, populaire et familier, 2023. (interjection)
• “parole” in Dictionnaire français en ligne Larousse.
• “parole” in Émile Littré, Dictionnaire de la langue française, 1872–1877.
• “parole” in Dictionnaire Le Robert.
• “parole”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.

parole

1. inflection of parolar:
   1. first/third-person singular present subjunctive
   2. third-person singular imperative

• IPA^(key): /paˈrɔ.le/
• Rhymes: -ɔle
• Hyphenation: pa‧rò‧le

parole f pl

1. plural of parola (“words”)

   Ci vogliono fatti e non parole. ― Action is needed, not words.

2. (music) lyrics, words

   Synonym: testo

   Musica di Paolo, parole di Lorenzo ― Music by Paolo, lyrics by Lorenzo.

• palerò, polare

Ultimately from French parole.

• IPA^(key): [ˈparːɔlːæ]

parole f (5th declension)

1. (military) password (a secret, pre-arranged word, phrase used as a sign of recognition, for example, in conspiratorial, intelligence, military activities)
   1. (military) password (an agreed name, a number called to identify the telephone subscriber to the communications service)
2. (computing) password (sequence of characters that gives access to a website)

   Jūs nekad neuzzināsit manu mobilā tālruņa paroli. ― You will never know my phone password.

• parole at tezaurs.lv

From Old French parole.

parole f (plural paroles)

1. word

• French: parole
  • → Dutch: parool
    • → Russian: пароль (parolʹ) (likely)
      • → Eastern Mari: пароль (paroĺ)
  • → Haitian Creole: pawòl
  • → Romanian: parolă
• → English: parole

From Vulgar Latin *paraula, from Late Latin, from Latin parabola (“comparison; later, speech”), from Ancient Greek παραβολή (parabolḗ).

parole oblique singular, f (oblique plural paroles, nominative singular parole, nominative plural paroles)

1. word

   Synonym: mot

   • c. 1155, Wace, Le Roman de Brut:

     A ceste parole a grant bruit

     Saying this caused uproar

2. (by extension, figuratively) the right to speak

• Middle French: parole
  • French: parole
    • → Dutch: parool
      • → Russian: пароль (parolʹ) (likely)
        • → Eastern Mari: пароль (paroĺ)
    • → Haitian Creole: pawòl
    • → Romanian: parolă
  • → English: parole
• Walloon: parole

parole

1. inflection of parolar:
   1. first/third-person singular present subjunctive
   2. third-person singular imperative

Borrowed from French parole.

• IPA^(key): /ˈparɔɫ/

parole f (indeclinable)

1. (linguistics) parole

• “parole”, in Slovníkový portál Jazykovedného ústavu Ľ. Štúra SAV [Dictionary portal of the Ľ. Štúr Institute of Linguistics, Slovak Academy of Science] (in Slovak), https://slovnik.juls.savba.sk, 2003–2025

Borrowed from English parole. Doublet of palabra.

• IPA^(key): /paˈɾole/ [paˈɾo.le]
• Rhymes: -ole
• Syllabification: pa‧ro‧le

parole m (plural paroles)

1. parole

   Synonym: libertad condicional