phrase

EnglishEdit

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phrase

EtymologyEdit

From Late Latin phrasis (“diction”), from Ancient Greek φράσις (phrásis, “manner of expression”), from φράζω (phrázō, “I tell, express”).

PronunciationEdit

enPR: frāz, IPA^(key): /fɹeɪz/
Audio (US) (file)
Rhymes: -eɪz
Homophones: fraise, frays

NounEdit

phrase (plural phrases)

Examples (grammar)
noun phrase: the big bird (head: bird)

A short written or spoken expression.
(grammar) A word or, more commonly, a group of words that functions as a single unit in the syntax of a sentence, usually consisting of a head, or central word, and elaborating words.
- 2013 November 30, Paul Davis, “Letters: Say it as simply as possible”, in The Economist‎^[1], volume 409, number 8864:
  Congratulations on managing to use the phrase “preponderant criterion” in a chart (“On your marks”, November 9th). Was this the work of a kakorrhaphiophobic journalist set a challenge by his colleagues, or simply an example of glossolalia?
(music) A small section of music in a larger piece.
(archaic) A mode or form of speech; diction; expression.
- c. 1603–1606, William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of King Lear”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, OCLC 606515358, [Act IV, scene vi]:
  Thou speak'st / In better phrase and matter than thou didst.
- 1847, Alfred Tennyson, “Part II”, in The Princess: A Medley, London: Edward Moxon, […], OCLC 2024748, page 39:
  […] From out a common vein of memory / Sweet household talk, and phrases of the hearth, […]
(dance) A short individual motion forming part of a choreographed dance.

SynonymsEdit

(expression): figure of speech, locution
See also Thesaurus:phrase

Derived termsEdit

TranslationsEdit

short written or spoken expression

Afrikaans: 'n frase, frase (af)
Albanian: frazë (sq) f
Amharic: ሐረግ (am) (ḥäräg)
Arabic: جُمْلَة‎ (ar) f (jumla), تَعْبِير‎ m (taʿbīr), عِبَارَة‎ f (ʿibāra)
Egyptian Arabic: تَعْبِير‎ m (taʿbīr)
Armenian: արտահայտություն (hy) (artahaytutʿyun)
Azerbaijani: ifadə (az), ibarə (az), fraza
Belarusian: фра́за f (fráza), высло́ўе n (vyslóŭje)
Bengali: বাক্য (bn) (bakjô), ফ্রেজ (phrej)
Bulgarian: фра́за (bg) f (fráza), и́зраз (bg) m (ízraz)
Burmese: နိဒ္ဒေသ (my) (niddesa.)
Chechen: алар (alar)
Chinese:
Cantonese: 片語, 片语 (pin³ jyu⁵)

Mandarin: 短語 (zh), 短语 (zh) (duǎnyǔ), 片語 (zh), 片语 (zh) (piànyǔ) (Taiwan), 詞組 (zh), 词组 (zh) (cízǔ)

Min Nan: 片語, 片语 (phiàn-gí)

Wu: 片語, 片语 (phi nyy)
Czech: fráze (cs) f
Danish: frase c, udtryk n
Dutch: uitspraak (nl) f
Esperanto: frazo (eo)
Estonian: fraas, väljend
Finnish: ilmaus (fi)
French: expression (fr) f, locution (fr) f
Galician: frase (gl) f
Georgian: ფრაზა (praza)
German: Redewendung (de) f, Phrase (de) f
Greek: φράση (el) f (frási)
Hebrew: צֵרוּף לָשׁוֹן‎ f (tzeiruf lashon), מִשְׁפָּט‎ (he) m (mishpát)
Hindi: मुहावरा (hi) m (muhāvrā), वाक्यांश m (vākyānś), वाक्य (hi) m (vākya)
Hungarian: mondás (hu), kifejezés (hu)
Icelandic: frasi (is) m, málsháttur (is) m
Indonesian: ungkapan (id), frasa (id)
Interlingua: expression (ia)
Irish: frása m
Italian: espressione (it) f, polirematica (it) f
Japanese: 句 (ja) (く, ku), 語句 (ja) (ごく, goku), フレーズ (ja) (furēzu)
Kazakh: фраза (fraza), сөйлем (söylem), сөйлемше (söylemşe)
Khmer: ឃ្លា (km) (khliə)
Korean: 어구(語句) (ko) (eogu), 구(句) (ko) (gu)

Kyrgyz: фраза (fraza), сүйлөм (ky) (süylöm)
Lao: ປໂຍກ (pa nyōk), ວະລີ (wa lī)
Latvian: frāze f
Lithuanian: žodžių junginys (lt) m, frazė f
Macedonian: фраза f (fraza), израз m (izraz)
Malay: ungkapan, frasa
Maori: kīanga, rerenga kupu
Mongolian:
Cyrillic: хэлц (mn) (khelts)
Norwegian:
Bokmål: frase (no) m

Nynorsk: frase m
Pashto: عبارت‎ (ps) m ('ebārat)
Persian: عبارت‎ (fa) ('ebârat), گروه واژه‎ (goruh vajhe), جمله‎ (fa) (jomle)
Polish: zdanie (pl) n, fraza (pl) f, wyrażenie (pl) n
Portuguese: expressão (pt) f, frase (pt) f
Romanian: expresie (ro) f, frază (ro) f
Russian: фра́за (ru) f (fráza), выраже́ние (ru) n (vyražénije)
Scottish Gaelic: abairt f
Serbo-Croatian:
Cyrillic: фра́за f

Roman: fráza (sh) f
Slovak: fráza f, zvrat m
Slovene: fraza (sl) f
Spanish: expresión (es) f, frase (es) f
Swedish: fras (sv) c, uttryck (sv) n
Tagalog: parirala
Tajik: ибора (tg) (ibora), ҷумла (tg) (jumla)
Tatar: гыйбарә (tt) (ğıybarä), сүзтезмә (süztezmä)
Thai: วลี (th) (wá-lii), ประโยค (th) (bprà-yòok)
Tok Pisin: toktok
Turkish: deyim (tr), tabir (tr), ifade (tr)
Turkmen: jümle, fraza
Ukrainian: фра́за f (fráza), ви́слів (uk) m (výsliv), ре́чення (uk) n (réčennja)
Uyghur: ئىبارەت‎ (ibaret)
Uzbek: ibora (uz), fraza (uz), gap (uz)
Vietnamese: cụm từ (vi), câu (vi)
Volapük: fraseod (vo)
Walloon: ratourneure (wa) f
Yiddish: פֿראַזע‎ f (fraze)
Zhuang: please add this translation if you can

grammar: group of two or more words that express an idea but do not form a complete sentence

Albanian: frazë (sq) f, shprehje (sq) f
Armenian: բառակապակցություն (hy) (baṙakapakcʿutʿyun)
Azerbaijani: ibarə (az)
Bulgarian: фра́за (bg) f (fráza)
Catalan: sintagma m
Czech: slovní spojení (cs) n, sousloví (cs) n
Dutch: frase (nl) f
Esperanto: lokucio
Estonian: fraas
Finnish: lauseke (fi), fraasi (fi)
French: syntagme (fr) m, phrase (fr) f (sentence)
German: Phrase (de) f
Greek: φράση (el) f (frási)
Hungarian: szókapcsolat (hu), szószerkezet (hu), (following an adjective that specifies it) csoport (hu) or szerkezet (hu)
Indonesian: frasa (id)
Irish: frása m, abairtín m
Italian: locuzione (it) f, polirematica (it) f, frase (it) f
Japanese: 句 (ja) (く, ku)
Korean: 구(句) (ko) (gu)
Lithuanian: žodžių junginys (lt) m, frazė f
Northern Sami: gihppu
Norwegian:
Bokmål: frase (no) m

Nynorsk: frase m

Persian: گروه واژه‎ (goruh vâže)
Polish: wypowiedzenie (pl) n, fraza (pl) f
Portuguese: locução (pt) f, sintagma (pt) m
Romani:
Kalo Finnish Romani: laavengo knippos
Romanian: frază (ro) f, expresie (ro) f, sintagmă (ro) f
Russian: словосочета́ние (ru) n (slovosočetánije), оборо́т ре́чи (ru) m (oborót réči), фра́за (ru) f (fráza)
Scottish Gaelic: abairt f
Slovene: stavek (sl) m
Spanish: sintagma (es) m
Swedish: fras (sv) c, uttryck (sv) n
Tagalog: parirala
Thai: วลี (th) (wá-lii)
Turkish: öbek (tr)
Vietnamese: cụm từ (vi)
Walloon: fråze (wa) f
Yiddish: פֿראַזע‎ f (fraze)

music: small section of music in a larger piece

Bulgarian: фраза (bg) f (fraza)
Catalan: frase (ca) f
Chinese:
Mandarin: 樂句 (zh), 乐句 (zh) (yuèjù)
Finnish: fraasi (fi), lauseke (fi)
French: phrase (fr) f
German: Phrase (de) f
Greek: φράση (el) f (frási)
Hungarian: frázis (hu)
Italian: frase (it) f
Japanese: 楽句 (がっく, gakku), フレーズ (ja) (furēzu)

Korean: 악구(樂句) (akgu)
Macedonian: фраза f (fraza)
Norwegian:
Bokmål: frase (no) m

Nynorsk: frase m
Polish: fraza (pl) f
Portuguese: frase (pt) f
Russian: фра́за (ru) f (fráza)
Spanish: frase (es) f
Swedish: fras (sv) c

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables, removing any numbers. Numbers do not necessarily match those in definitions. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Translations to be checked

Indonesian: ^{(please verify)} frase (id)
Interlingua: ^{(please verify)} phrase (ia), ^{(please verify)} expression (ia), ^{(please verify)} locution

VerbEdit

phrase (third-person singular simple present phrases, present participle phrasing, simple past and past participle phrased)

(transitive) To express (an action, thought or idea) by means of particular words.
I wasn't sure how to phrase my condolences without sounding patronising.
- 1613, William Shakespeare; [John Fletcher], “The Famous History of the Life of King Henry the Eight”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, OCLC 606515358, [Act I, scene i]:
  These suns — for so they phrase 'em.
(intransitive, music) To perform a passage with the correct phrasing.
(transitive, music) To divide into melodic phrases.