A- (3) prefix meaning "not," from Gk a-, an- "not," from pie base *ne "not" (see un-)

park (n.) --- c.1260, "enclosed preserve for beasts of the chase," from O.Fr. parc, probably ult. from W.Gmc. *parruk "enclosed tract of land" (cf. O.E. pearruc, root of paddock (2), O.H.G. pfarrih "fencing about, enclosure," Ger. pferch "fold for sheep," Du. park). Internal evidence suggests the W.Gmc. word is pre-4c. and originally meant the fencing, not the place enclosed. Found also in M.L. parricus "enclosure, park" (8c.), which is likely the direct source of the O.Fr. word, as well as It. parco, Sp. parque, etc. Some claim the M.L. word as the source of the W.Gmc., but the reverse seems more likely. OED discounts notion of a Celtic origin. Welsh parc, Gael. pairc are from English. As a surname, Parker "keeper of a park" is attested in Eng. from c.1145. Meaning "enclosed lot in or near a town, for public recreation" is first attested 1663, originally in ref. to London; the sense evolution is via royal parks in the original, hunting sense being overrun by the growth of London and being opened to the public. Applied to sporting fields in Amer.Eng. from 1867. New York's Park Avenue as an adj. meaning "luxurious and fashionable" (1956) was preceded in the same sense by London's Park Lane (1880).

park (v.) --- 1812, "to arrange military vehicles in a park," from park (n.) (q.v.) in a limited sense of "enclosure for military vehicles" (attested from 1683). General non-military meaning "to put (a vehicle) in a certain place" is first recorded 1844. Parking lot is from 1924; parking ticket first attested 1947; park-and-ride is from 1966. The transmission gear (n.) is attested from 1963.

parka --- 1780, from Aleut. parka, from Rus. parka "a pelt or jacket made from pelt," from Samoyed.

Parkinson's disease --- 1877, from Fr. maladie de Parkinson (1876), named for Eng. physician James Parkinson (1755-1824), who described it (1817) under the names shaking palsy and paralysis agitans.

Parkinson's Law --- 1955, (first in the "Economist" of Nov. 19), named for its deviser, British historian and journalist Cyril Northcote Parkinson (1909-1993): "work expands to fill the time available for its completion."

parlance --- 1579, way of speaking, from Anglo-Fr. (c.1300) and O.Fr. parlance, from O.Fr. parlaunce, from parler "to speak" (see parley).

parlay --- 1701, term in the card game faro, from Fr. parole, from It. parole (Neapolitan paroli) "words, promises," pl. of parolo (see parole). Meaning "exploit to advantage" is from 1942.

parley (n.) --- conference, especially with an enemy, 1449, from M.Fr. parlée, from fem. pp. of O.Fr. parler "to speak," from L.L. parabolare "to speak (in parables)," from parabola "speech, discourse," from L. parabola "comparison" (see parable). The verb is 14c., probably a separate borrowing of O.Fr. parler.

parleyvoo --- colloquial for "the French language," 1754, from Fr. parlez-vous (français?) "do you speak (French?)."

parliament --- c.1290, from O.Fr. parlement (11c.), originally "speaking, talk," from parler "to speak" (see parley); spelling altered c.1400 to conform with M.L. parliamentum. Anglo-L. parliamentum is attested from 1216. Parliamentarian originally (1644) was a designation of one of the sides in the Eng. Civil War; meaning "one versed in parliamentary procedure" dates from 1834.

parlor --- c.1225, parlur, from O.Fr. parleor (12c.), from parler "to speak" (see parley). Originally "window through which confessions were made," also "apartment in a monastery for conversations with outside persons;" sense of "sitting room for private conversation" is c.1374; that in ice cream parlor is first recorded 1884.

parlous --- c.1380, late M.E. contraction of perilous (q.v.).

Parmesan --- type of dry, hard cheese, 1556, from It. Parmegiano, from Parma, city in northern Italy, one of the places where the cheese is made. The place name is ult. from Etruscan. Full form parmeson chese is recorded from 1519.

Parnassus --- mountain in Greece, symbolic of poetry, c.1386, from Gk. Parnassos, mountain in central Greece, sacred to Apollo and the Muses.

Parnellite --- in Ir. history, 1881, adherent of the Irish Home Rule policy of Charles Stewart Parnell (1846-91).

parochial --- 1393, from Anglo-Fr. parochiel (1292), from O.Fr. parochial, from L.L. parochialis "of a parish" (c. 600), from parochia (see parish). Parochialism in the sense of "limited and narrow character or tendency" is first recorded 1847. Parochial school is attested from 1755.

parody --- 1598 (first used in Eng. by Ben Jonson), from or in imitation of L. parodia "parody," from Gk. paroidia "burlesque song or poem," from para- "beside, parallel to" (in this case, "mock-") + oide "song, ode." The meaning "poor or feeble imitation" is from 1830. The verb is attested from c.1745.

parole --- 1616, "word of honor," especially "promise by a prisoner of war not to escape," from Fr. parole "word, speech" (in parole d'honneur "word of honor") from Gallo-Romance *paraula "speech, discourse," from L. parabola (see parable). Sense of "conditional release of a prisoner before full term" is first attested 1908 in criminal slang. The verb (1716) originally was what the prisoner did ("pledge"); its transitive meaning "put on parole" is first attested 1853.

paroxysm --- sudden attack, convulsion, 1577, from M.Fr. paroxysme (16c.), earlier paroxime (13c.), from M.L. paroxysmus "irritation, fit of a disease," from Gk. paroxysmos, from paroxynein "to irritate, goad," from para- "beyond" + oxynein "sharpen, goad," from oxys "sharp, pointed" (see acrid). Non-medical sense first attested 1604.

parquet --- 1816, "patterned wooden flooring," from Fr. parquet "wooden flooring, enclosed portion of a park," from O.Fr. parchet (14c.) "small compartment, part of a park or theater," dim. of parc (see park). Meaning "part of a theater auditorium at the front of the ground floor" is first recorded 1848.

parricide --- 1. "person who kills a parent or near relative" (1554), also 2. "act of killing parent or near relative" (1570), both from M.Fr. parricide, from 1. L. parricida, 2. L. parricidium, probably from parus "relative" (of unknown origin) + 1. cida "killer," 2. cidium "killing," both from caedere "to kill" (see concise).

parrot --- c.1525, perhaps from dial. M.Fr. perrot, from var. of Pierre "Peter;" or perhaps a dial. form of perroquet (see parakeet). Replaced earlier popinjay. The verb "repeat without understanding" is first attested 1596. The Ger. naturalist Alexander von Humboldt in S.America 1800 encountered a very old parrot that was the sole speaker of a dead Indian language, the original tribe having gone extinct.

parry (v.) --- 1634, from Fr. parez! (which commonly would have been heard in fencing lessons), imper. of parer "ward off," from It. parare "to ward or defend a blow," from L. parare "make ready, prepare" (see pare). Non-fencing use is from 1718.

parse --- c.1553, "to state the parts of speech in a sentence," verb use of M.E. pars (n.) "part of speech" (c.1300), from O.Fr. pars, pl. of part "part," from L. pars (see part (n.)) in school question, Quae pars orationis? "What part of speech?"

parsec --- 1913, from par(allax) sec(ond). It is the distance at which an object has parallax (viewed from Earth) of one second of arc, or about 3.26 light years.

Parsee --- 1615, descendant of Zoroastrians who fled to India 7c.-8c. after Muslim conquest of Persia, from O.Pers. parsi "Persian." In M.E., Parsees meant "Persians."

parsimony --- 1432, from L. parsimonia "sparingness, frugality," from pars-, stem of parsi, perf. tense of parcere "to spare, save" + -monia, suffix signifying action or condition. Parsimonious first attested 1598, not originally with suggestion of stinginess.

parsley --- 14c. merger of O.E. petersilie, O.Fr. peresil (13c.), both from M.L. petrosilium, from L. petroselinum, from Gk. petroselinon "rock-parsley," from petros "rock, stone" + selinon "celery."

parsnip --- 16c., parsnepe, corruption (by influence of M.E. nepe "turnip") of M.E. passenep (1398), from O.Fr. pasnaie, from L. pastinaca "parsnip, carrot," from pastinum "two-pronged fork" (related to pastinare "to dig up the ground") so called from the shape of the root. The parsnip was considered a kind of turnip.

parson --- 1197, from Anglo-Fr., O.Fr. persone "curate, parson" (12c.), from M.L. persona "parson" (see person). Ecclesiastical use obscure, may refer to the "person" legally holding church property, or it may be an abbreviation of persona ecclesiae "person of the church." Parsonage "house for a parson" first attested 1472.

part (n.) --- c.1000, "part of speech," from O.Fr. part, from L. partem (nom. pars, gen. partis) "part, piece, side, share," related to L. portio "share, portion," from PIE base *per- "to assign, allot" (cf. Gk. peprotai "it has been granted," Skt. purtam "reward," Hittite parshiya- "fraction, part"). It has replaced native deal in most senses. Theatrical sense (1495) is from an actor's "share" in a performance. Meaning "the parting of the hair" is 1890, Amer.Eng.

part (v.) --- c.1275, "to divide into parts," from O.Fr. partir "to divide, separate," from L. partire, from pars (see part (n.)). Sense of "to separate (someone from someone else)" is from c.1315; that of "to take leave" is from 1426. Meaning "to separate the hair" is attested from 1615.

partake --- 1561, back-formation from M.E. part-taking (1382), translation of L. particeps "participant" (see participation).

parthenogenesis --- reproduction without fertilization, 1849, from Gk. parthenos "virgin" + genesis (q.v.).

Parthenon --- name of the temple of Athena on the Acropolis in Athens, from Gk., lit. "temple of the virgin goddess" (Athene), from parthenos "virgin," of unknown origin.

Parthian --- 1526, native or inhabitant of Parthia (ancient kingdom northeast of Persia in western Asia), from O.Pers. Parthava- "Parthian," dial. variant of the stem Parsa-, source of Persia. Phrase Parthian shot (1590) is in ref. to their horsemen, who were expert at racing forward, turning, and shooting arrows backward at the moment of retreat.

partial --- c.1420, "one-sided, biased," from O.Fr. parcial (14c.), from M.L. partialis "divisible, solitary, partial," from L. pars (gen. partis) "part" (see part (n.)). Sense of "not whole, incomplete" is attested from 1460 (implied in partially "incompletely"). Partiality "one-sidedness" is first recorded 1422, from M.Fr. parcialité, from M.L. partialitatem (nom. partialitas), from partialis.

participation --- c.1374, from O.Fr. participation (13c.), from L.L. participationem (nom. participatio), noun of action from pp. stem of L. participare "participate," from particeps (gen. participis) "partaker," from pars (gen. partis) "part" (see part (n.)) + root of capere "to take" (see capable). Participatory is attested from 1881; participatory democracy is from 1968.

participle --- 1388, "a noun-adjective," from O.Fr. participle, var. of participe, from L. participium, lit. "a sharing, partaking," from particeps "partaker" (see participation). In grammatical sense, the L. translates Gk. metokhe "sharer, partaker," and the notion is of a word "partaking" of the nature of both a noun and an adjective.

particle --- 1380, "small part or division of a whole," from L. particula "little bit or part," dim. of pars (gen. partis), see part (n.). In construction, particle board (1957) is so called because it is made from chips and shavings of wood.

parti-colored --- 1535, from party "divided," from pp. of Fr. partir "to divide" (see part (v.)). The noun parti itself occurs in the sense "parti-colored" from c.1380.

particular --- c.1386, "pertaining to a single thing or person," from O.Fr. particuler, from L.L. particularis "of a part," from L. particula "particle" (see particle). Sense of "precise, exacting" first recorded 1814. Noun meaning "a part or section of a whole" is from 1494. Particulars "small details of statement" is from 1606. Particularly "in a special degree, more than others" is attested from 1676.

partisan (n.) --- 1555, "one who takes part with another, zealous supporter," from M.Fr. partisan (15c.), from dial. upper It. partezan (Tuscan partigiano) "member of a faction, partner," from parte "part, party," from L. partem (nom. pars), see part (n.). Sense of "guerilla fighter" is first recorded 1692. The adj. is 1708 for warfare, 1842 for politics.

partition (n.) --- c.1430, "division into shares, distinction," from O.Fr. particion, from L. partitionem (nom. partitio) "division, portion," from partitus, pp. of partire "to part" (see part (v.)). Sense of "that which separates" first recorded 1486. The verb is from 1741.

partitive --- 1520, "having the quality of dividing into parts," from L.L. partitivus, from L. partitus, pp. of partire "to divide" (see part (v.)).

partner --- c.1290, from O.Fr. parçener "joint heir," from parçon "partition," from L. partitionem (nom. partitio) "portion" (see partition). Form infl. by part (n.). The word may also represent O.Fr. part tenour "part holder." Partnership in the commercial sense is attested from c.1700.

partridge --- 1176, from O.Fr. pertis, alteration of perdis (perhaps infl. by fem. suffix -tris), from L. perdicem (nom. perdix), from Gk. perdix, the Greek partridge, probably related to perdesthai "to break wind," in ref. to the whirring noise of the bird's wings, from PIE imitative base *perd- "to break wind" (cf. Skt. pardate "breaks wind," Lith. perdzu, Rus. perdet, O.H.G. ferzan, O.N. freta, M.E. farten).

part-time (adj.) --- 1891, from part (n.) + time.

parturient --- about to give birth, 1592, from L. parturientem (nom. parturiens), prp. of parturire "be in labor," desiderative of parere "to bear" (see parent).

party --- c.1290, "part, portion, side," from O.Fr. partie "a part, a party" (12c.), lit. "that which is divided," from fem. pp. of partir "to divide" (see part (v.)). Political sense of "side in a contest or dispute" evolved by 1300; meaning "a person" is from 1460. Sense of "gathering for social pleasure" is first found 1716, from general sense of persons gathered together (originally for some specific purpose, e.g. dinner party, hunting party). The verb is first attested 1922, from the noun. Phrase the party is over is from 1937; party line is first recorded 1834 in the sense of "policy adopted by a political party," 1893 in the sense of "telephone line shared by two or more subscribers." Party pooper is from 1951, Amer.Eng.

parvenu --- upstart, 1802, from Fr. parvenu, "said of an obscure person who has made a great fortune," noun use of pp. of parvenir "to arrive," from L. pervenire, from per- "through" + venire "to come" (see venue).

Parzival --- hero of medieval legends, from O.Fr. Perceval, lit. "he who breaks through the valley," from percer "to pierce, break through" + val "valley."

pas --- a step in dancing, 1775, see pass (n.).

PASCAL --- high-level computer programming language, 1971, named for Fr. scholar Blaise Pascal (1623-62), who invented a calculating machine c.1642.

paschal --- 1427, "of or pertaining to Easter," from L.L. paschalis, from pascha "Passover, Easter," from Gk. pascha "Passover," from Aramaic pasha "pass over," corresponding to Heb. pesah, from pasah "to pass over" (see Passover). Pasche was an early M.E. term for "Easter" (see Easter).

pasha --- Turk. honorary title formerly given to officers of high rank, 1646, from Turk. pasha, earlier basha, from bash "head, chief" (no clear distinction between -b- and -p- in Turk.), Earlier in Eng. as bashaw (1534).

Pasiphae --- wife of Minos, mother of Phaedra and Ariadne, from L., from Gk. Pasiphae, from pasiphaes "shining for all," from pasi "for all" + phaos "light."

pasquinade --- a lampoon, 1658, from M.Fr., from It. pasquinata (1509), from Pasquino, name given to a mutilated ancient statue (now known to represent Menelaus dragging the dead Patroclus) set up by Cardinal Caraffa in his palace in Rome in 1501; the locals named it after a schoolmaster (or tailor, or barber) named Pasquino who lived nearby. A custom developed of posting satirical verses and lampoons on the statue.

pass (n.) --- mountain defile, c.1300, from O.Fr. pas "step, track," from L. passus "step, pace" (see pace (1)). The meaning "written permission to pass into, or through, a place" is first recorded 1591, from pass (v.). Sense of "ticket for a free ride or admission" is first found 1838.

pass (v.) --- c.1275 (trans.) "to go by (something)," also "to cross over," from O.Fr. passer, from V.L. *passare "to step, walk, pass," from L. passus "step, pace" (see pace (1)). Intrans. sense of "to go on, to move forward, make one's way" is attested from 1297. Fig. sense of "to experience, undergo" (as in pass the time) is first recorded 1390. The meaning "to be thought to be something one is not" (esp. in racial sense) is from 1935, from pass oneself off (as), first found 1809. The general verb sense of "to be accepted as equivalent" is from 1596. Sense of "to go through an examination successfully" is from 1429. Meaning "decline to do something" is attested from 1869, originally in cards (euchre). In football, hockey, soccer, etc., the meaning "to transfer the ball or puck to another player" is from c.1865. Colloquial make a pass "offer an amorous advance" first recorded 1928, perhaps from a sporting sense. Pass up "decline, refuse" is attested from 1896. Pass the buck is from 1865, said to be poker slang reference to the buck horn-handled knife that was passed around to signify whose turn it was to deal. Pass the hat "seek contributions" is from 1762. Pass-fail as a grading method is attested from 1959.

pass out (v.) --- lose consciousness, 1915, from pass (v.) + out. Probably from weakened sense of earlier meaning "to die" (1899). Meaning "to distribute" is attested from 1926.

passable --- 1413, "that may be crossed," from pass (v.) + -able. Sense of "tolerable," is first attested 1489.

passacaglia --- dance tune of Sp. origin, 1659, from It., from Sp. pasacalle, from pasar "to pass" + calle "street." So called because they often were played in the streets.

passage --- c.1290, "action of passing," from O.Fr. passage (11c.), from passer "to go by" (see pass (v.)). Originally "a road, passage," meaning "corridor in a building" first recorded 1611. Meaning "a portion of writing" is from c.1611, of music, from 1674.

Passamaquoddy --- Indian tribe of s.e. Maine, from Micmac, lit. "place where pollack are plentiful," or else, if it originally is a tribal name, "those of the place of many pollack."

pass-book --- 1828, from pass (v.) + book; apparently the notion is of the document "passing" between bank and customer.

passe --- 1775, from Fr. passé (fem. passée) "past, faded," pp. of passer "to pass." Originally of a woman past the period of greatest beauty.

passel --- 1835, dial. variant of parcel.

passenger --- c.1330, passager "passer-by," from O.Fr. passageor "traveler," noun use of passagier (adj.) "passing, fleeting, traveling," from passage (see passage). The -n- was added c.1420 (cf. messenger, harbinger, scavenger). Meaning "one traveling in a vehicle or vessel" first attested 1511. Passenger-pigeon of N.Amer. so called from 1802; extinct since 1914.

passe-partout --- master-key, 1675, from Fr., lit. "pass everywhere," from passer "to pass" (see pass (v.)) + partout "everywhere," from par "through" + tout "all."

passer-by --- 1568, from agent noun of pass (v.) + by; earlier, this sense was in passager (see passenger).

passerine (adj.) --- 1776, from L. passerinus "of a sparrow," from passer "sparrow," possibly of imitative origin. The noun is 1842, from the adj.

passim --- 1803, "occurring in various places," from L., lit. "scatteredly," adv. from passus, pp. of pandere "to stretch."

passion --- c.1175, "sufferings of Christ on the Cross," from O.Fr. passion, from L.L. passionem (nom. passio) "suffering, enduring," from stem of L. pati "to suffer, endure," from PIE base *pei- "to hurt" (cf. Skt. pijati "reviles, scorns," Gk. pema "suffering, misery, woe," O.E. feond "enemy, devil," Goth. faian "to blame"). Sense extended to sufferings of martyrs, and suffering generally, by 1225; meaning "strong emotion, desire" is attested from c.1374, from L.L. use of passio to render Gk. pathos. Replaced O.E. þolung (used in glosses to render L. passio), lit. "suffering," from þolian (v.) "to endure." Sense of "sexual love" first attested 1588; that of "strong liking, enthusiasm, predilection" is from 1638. The passion-flower so called from 1633.

passionate --- c.1450, "angry, emotional," from M.L. passionatus "affected with passion," from L. passio (gen. passionis) "passion" (see passion). Specific sense of "amorous" is attested from 1589.

passive (adj.) --- 1388, in grammatical sense (opposed to active), from L. passivus "capable of feeling or suffering," from pass-, pp. stem of pati "to suffer" (see passion). Meaning "not active" is first recorded 1477. Passive resistance first attested 1819 in Scott's "Ivanhoe"; re-coined by Gandhi c.1906 in S.Africa.

Passover --- 1530, coined by Tyndale from pass over, to translate Heb. pesah (see paschal), in reference to the Lord "passing over" the houses of the Israelites in Egypt when he killed the first-born of the Egyptians (Ex. xii).

passport --- c.1500, from M.Fr. passeport "authorization to pass through a port" to enter or leave a country (15c.), from passe, imper. of O.Fr. passer "to pass" + port "port."

password --- word appointed as a sign to distinguish friend from foe, c.1817, from pass (v.) + word.

past (adj.) --- c.1300, "done with, over," from pp. of passen "go by" (see pass (v.)). The noun meaning "times gone by" is first attested 1590, from the adj.

pasta --- 1874, from It. pasta, from L.L. pasta "dough, pastry cake, paste," from Gk. pasta "barley porridge," probably originally "a salted mess of food," from neut. pl. of pastos (adj.) "sprinkled, salted," from passein "to sprinkle."

paste (n.) --- 1166, "dough," from O.Fr. paste, from L.L. pasta "dough, pastry cake, paste" (see pasta). Meaning "glue mixture" is first attested 1440. The verb "to stick with paste" is from 1560s. Pasteboard (1548) is so called because it is made of sheets of paper pasted together. Pasties "adhesive patches worn over the nipples by exotic dancers" first attested 1961.

paste (v.) --- hit hard, 1846, probably an alteration of baste "beat" (see lambaste).

pastel --- 1662, "crayons, chalk-like pigment used in crayons," from Fr. pastel "crayon," from It. pastello "a pastel," lit. "material reduced to a paste," from L.L. pastellus "dye from the leaves of the woad plant," dim. of pasta (see pasta). Meaning "pale or light color" first recorded 1899.

pastern --- 1284, "shackle fixed on the foot of a horse or other beast," from O.Fr. pasturon, dim. of pasture "shackle for a horse in pasture," from V.L. *pastoria, noun use of fem. of L. pastorius "of herdsmen," from pastor "shepherd" (see pastor). Metathesis of -r- and following vowel occurred 1500s. Sense extended (1530) to part of the leg to which the tether was attached.

pasteurize --- 1881, after Louis Pasteur (1822-95), Fr. chemist and bacteriologist, who invented the process of heating food, milk, wine, etc., to kill most of the micro-organisms in it; distinguished from sterilization, which involves killing all of them.

pastiche --- a medley made up of fragments from different works, 1878, from Fr. pastiche, from It. pasticcio "medley, pastry cake," from V.L. *pasticium "composed of paste," from L.L. pasta "paste, pastry cake" (see pasta). Borrowed earlier (1752) in the It. form.

pastime --- 1489, passe tyme "recreation, diversion, amusement, sport," formed on model of M.Fr. passe-temps (15c.), from passe, imper. of passer "to pass" + temps "time."

pastor (n.) --- 1242, "shepherd," also "spiritual guide, shepherd of souls" (1377), from O.Fr. pastur "herdsman, shepherd" (12c.), from L. pastorem (nom. pastor) "shepherd," from pastus, pp. of pascere "to lead to pasture, graze," from PIE base *pa- "to tend, keep, pasture, feed, guard" (see food). The spiritual sense was in Church L. (cf. Gregory's "Cura Pastoralis"). The verb in the Christian sense is from 1872.