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Word of the Day

Monday, November 04, 2002

parley

\PAR-lee\ , noun;
1.
A conference or discussion, especially with an enemy, as with regard to a truce or other matters.
Quotes:
The government recognized his knack for parleying with tribes, and it sent him all over the West.
-- Geoffrey O'Gara, What You See in Clear Water
Whether the Indians came out to parley or, seeing that the fort was about to fall, came out to surrender is unclear.
-- Willard Sterne Randall, George Washington: A Life
In case of Servia's non-compliance with the ultimatum the army will invade the kingdom without further parley.
-- "Austria Ready to Invade Servia Sends Ultimatum", New York Times, July 24, 1914
Origin:
Parley comes from Old French parlée, from parler, "to speak," from Medieval Latin parabolare, from Late Latin parabola, "a proverb, a parable, a similitude," from Greek parabole, "a comparison, a placing beside," from paraballein, "to throw beside, hence to compare," from para-, "beside" + ballein, "to throw."
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