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Definition of parse - 2 dictionary results

parse

[pahrs, pahrz] verb, parsed, pars⋅ing.
–verb (used with object)
1. to analyze (a sentence) in terms of grammatical constituents, identifying the parts of speech, syntactic relations, etc.
2. to describe (a word in a sentence) grammatically, identifying the part of speech, inflectional form, syntactic function, etc.
3. Computers. to analyze (a string of characters) in order to associate groups of characters with the syntactic units of the underlying grammar.
–verb (used without object)
4. to admit of being parsed.

Origin:
1545–55; < L pars part, as in pars ōrātiōnis part of speech


pars⋅a⋅ble, adjective
parser, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To parse
parse   (pärs)   
v.   parsed, pars·ing, pars·es

v.   tr.
  1. To break (a sentence) down into its component parts of speech with an explanation of the form, function, and syntactical relationship of each part.

  2. To describe (a word) by stating its part of speech, form, and syntactical relationships in a sentence.

    1. To examine closely or subject to detailed analysis, especially by breaking up into components: "What are we missing by parsing the behavior of chimpanzees into the conventional categories recognized largely from our own behavior?" (Stephen Jay Gould).

    2. To make sense of; comprehend: I simply couldn't parse what you just said.

  3. Computer Science To analyze or separate (input, for example) into more easily processed components.

v.   intr.
To admit of being parsed: sentences that do not parse easily.

[Probably from Middle English pars, part of speech, from Latin pars (ōrātiōnis), part (of speech); see perə-2 in Indo-European roots.]
pars'er n.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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