paragraph

play

noun par·a·graph \ ˈper-ə-ˌgraf , ˈpa-rə- \

Definition of paragraph

1 a :a subdivision of a written composition that consists of one or more sentences, deals with one point or gives the words of one speaker, and begins on a new usually indented line

The introductory paragraphs were written by the editor.

b :a short composition or note that is complete in one paragraph

2 :a character (such as ¶) used to indicate the beginning of a paragraph and as a reference mark

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paragraphic

play \ˌper-ə-ˈgra-fik, ˌpa-rə-\ adjective

See paragraph defined for English-language learners

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Examples of paragraph in a Sentence

In the second paragraph from the bottom, you've misspelled “their” as “thier.”
Please refer to section 2, paragraph 4 for the appropriate information.
The two introductory paragraphs were written by the editor.

Recent Examples of paragraph from the Web

About half of India’s ten-year-olds cannot read a paragraph meant for seven-year-olds.

— The Economist, "EdtechTechnology is transforming what happens when a child goes to school," 22 July 2017
Replaces 'companies' with 'communications' in the second paragraph]

— Bloomberg.com, "Australia Plans Law to Force Facebook, Google to Decrypt Messages," 14 July 2017
Stanford pointed to a three-paragraph online statement on animal research that notes achievements such as the isolation of insulin.

— meredith wadman, Science | AAAS, "To woo public, Europe opens up on animal experiments, but U.S. less transparent," 14 July 2017
The short, technical paragraph calls for the Internal Revenue Service to allow patients with high-deductible health plans to receive care for chronic diseases, including drugs, before meeting their deductibles.

— emily kopp, Kaiser Health News, "Whichever Way ‘Repeal And Replace’ Blows, Pharma Is Due For Windfall," 12 July 2017
Such accidents rarely get more than a few paragraphs in the local news.

— pat caldwell, idahostatesman, "After Idaho man’s wild weekend, a deadly desert crash in Oregon," 10 July 2017
Here is the paragraph where CMS finds that the customers on the Obamacare exchanges have not been getting sicker:

— jonathan chait, Daily Intelligencer, "Trump’s Own Government Admits Trump Is Lying About Obamacare’s ‘Death Spiral’," 5 July 2017
The dynamics in that paragraph—not the Warriors title—are why the NBA off-season has gone crazy.

— andrew sharp, SI.com, "NBA Free Agency And The Supermax Paradox," 30 June 2017
Decisions of the Sponsor are final and binding in all matters related to this paragraph.

— ew staff, EW.com, "The Walking Dead," 29 June 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'paragraph.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of paragraph

Middle English paragraf marginal sign marking a paragraph, from Anglo-French parogref, from Medieval Latin paragraphus, from Greek paragraphos line used to mark change of persons in a dialogue, from paragraphein to write alongside, from para- + graphein to write — more at carve

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First Known Use: 15th century

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