PHRASE Definition & Meaning

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phrase

[ freyz ]

Phonetic (Standard)IPA

noun

Grammar.
1. a sequence of two or more words arranged in a grammatical construction and acting as a unit in a sentence.
2. (in English) a sequence of two or more words that does not contain a finite verb and its subject or that does not consist of clause elements such as subject, verb, object, or complement, as a preposition and a noun or pronoun, an adjective and noun, or an adverb and verb.
Rhetoric. a word or group of spoken words that the mind focuses on momentarily as a meaningful unit and is preceded and followed by pauses.
a characteristic, current, or proverbial expression:
a hackneyed phrase.
Music. a division of a composition, commonly a passage of four or eight measures, forming part of a period.
a way of speaking, mode of expression, or phraseology:
a book written in the phrase of the West.
a brief utterance or remark:
In a phrase, he's a dishonest man.
Dance. a sequence of motions making up part of a choreographic pattern.

verb (used with object)

phrased, phrasing.

to express or word in a particular way:
to phrase an apology well.
to express in words:
to phrase one's thoughts.
Music.
1. to mark off or bring out the phrases of (a piece), especially in execution.
2. to group (notes) into a phrase.

verb (used without object)

phrased, phrasing.

Music. to perform a passage or piece with proper phrasing.

phrase

/ �ڰ��ɪ�� /

noun

a group of words forming an immediate syntactic constituent of a clause Compare clause noun phrase verb phrase
a particular expression, esp an original one
music a small group of notes forming a coherent unit of melody
(in choreography) a short sequence of dance movements

verb

music to divide (a melodic line, part, etc) into musical phrases, esp in performance
to express orally or in a phrase

phrase

A group of grammatically connected words within a sentence: “ One council member left in a huff ”; “She got much satisfaction from planting daffodil bulbs .” Unlike clauses , phrases do not have both a subject and a predicate .

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Other 51�Թ� Forms

��·�� verb (used with object) misphrased misphrasing
�ܲ�·�� adjective

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51�Թ� History and Origins

Origin of phrase¹

First recorded in 1520–30; (noun) back formation from phrases, plural of earlier phrasis, from Latin phrasis “diction, style” (plural ��ŧ�� ), from Greek ��á�� “diction, style, speech,” equivalent to ��á(��𾱲�) “to speak” + -sis -sis; (verb) derivative of the noun

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51�Թ� History and Origins

Origin of phrase¹

C16: from Latin phrasis, from Greek: speech, from phrazein to declare, tell

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Synonym Study

Phrase, expression, idiom, locution all refer to grammatically related groups of words. A phrase is a sequence of two or more words that make up a grammatical construction, usually lacking a finite verb and hence not a complete clause or sentence: shady lane (a noun phrase); at the bottom (a prepositional phrase); very slowly (an adverbial phrase). In general use, phrase refers to any frequently repeated or memorable group of words, usually of less than sentence length or complexity: a case of feast or famine—to use the well-known phrase. Expression is the most general of these words and may refer to a word, a phrase, or even a sentence: prose filled with old-fashioned expressions. An idiom is a phrase or larger unit of expression that is peculiar to a single language or a variety of a language and whose meaning, often figurative, cannot easily be understood by combining the usual meanings of its individual parts, as to go for broke. Locution is a somewhat formal term for a word, a phrase, or an expression considered as peculiar to or characteristic of a regional or social dialect or considered as a sample of language rather than as a meaning-bearing item: a unique set of locutions heard only in the mountainous regions of the South.

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Example Sentences

Examples have not been reviewed.

A phrase like "diverse viewpoints" sets off warning bells for many climate scientists, pointing to the transparent effort to continue to foment confusion about the causes and impacts of climate change.

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In an unusual twist in the governor’s race, a wealthy Democratic businessman is suing former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa over the use of a common phrase in political campaigns.

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In the early morning, before the shutters even open, the cavernous lobby of the wholesale market echoes with voices reciting key phrases.

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Whether they spill over into 'clear red water' - a phrase coined at the start of the century to describe how the Welsh party differentiated itself from its Westminster colleagues - remains to be seen.

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“David coined this phrase, ‘normalizing the marginalized,’” Jessica explains when we chat on a video call in April, sitting next to David in their Southern California home.

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phrasal verb phrase book

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