parole

1 of 2

noun

pa·​role pə-ˈrōl 

1

: a promise made with or confirmed by a pledge of one's honor

especially : the promise of a prisoner of war to fulfill stated conditions in consideration of their release

2

: a watchword given only to officers of the guard and of the day

3

: a conditional release of a prisoner serving an indeterminate or unexpired sentence

4

a

: language viewed as a specific individual usage : performance

b

: a linguistic act compare langue

parole adjective

parole

2 of 2

verb

paroled; paroling

transitive verb

: to release (a prisoner) on parole

Examples of parole in a Sentence

Noun

The prisoner will be eligible for parole after three years.

She robbed a bank while out on parole.

The prisoner was released on parole.

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

The program allowed more than 70,000 Afghan nationals into the country under a two-year parole to obtain more permanent status, according to a congressional report. —Thao Nguyen, USA Today, 28 Nov. 2025

Those people came on two-year grants of parole, then later had to apply for other ways to stay in the country permanently, like asylum, and go through rigorous screening. —NPR, 27 Nov. 2025

Verb

He was sentenced to 30 years in that case and served about 12 before being paroled again. —Stepheny Price, FOXNews.com, 17 Nov. 2025

She was subsequently paroled and released on her own recognizance. —Anna Alejo, CBS News, 17 Nov. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Noun

borrowed from French, "speech, expression in words, word, promise," going back to Old French, going back to Gallo-Romance *paraula, going back to Late Latin parabola "comparison, allegory, proverb, discourse, speech"; (sense 4) after the use of parole in this sense by Ferdinand de saussure in Cours de linguistique générale (1916) — more at parable

Verb

derivative of parole entry 1

First Known Use

Noun

1531, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

1776, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for parole

• bankroll
• bedroll
• borehole
• cajole
• catchpole
• charcoal
• condole
• control
• dipole
• downhole
• enroll
• extol

Kids Definition

parole

1 of 2 noun

pa·​role pə-ˈrōl 

: an early release of a prisoner who meets specified requirements

parole

2 of 2 verb

paroled; paroling

: to release on parole

parolee

pə-ˌrō-ˈlē

noun

Medical Definition

parole

noun

pa·​role pə-ˈrōl 

: a conditional release given to a psychiatric patient in a hospital before discharge enabling the patient to visit freely various designated areas on the hospital grounds or beyond its limits

parolable adjective

parole transitive verb

paroled; paroling

Legal Definition

parole

noun

pa·​role pə-ˈrōl 

: a conditional release of a prisoner who has served part of a sentence and who remains under the control of and in the legal custody of a parole authority compare probation

Etymology

Noun

Old French, speech, word, prisoner's word of honor to fulfill stated conditions, from Late Latin parabola speech, parable, from Greek parabolē comparison