phrase

noun

\ ˈfrāz

Definition of phrase

(Entry 1 of 2)

1 : a characteristic manner or style of expression : diction

2a : a brief expression especially : catchphrase

b : word

3 : a short musical thought typically two to four measures long closing with a cadence

4 : a word or group of words forming a syntactic constituent with a single grammatical function an adverbial phrase

5 : a series of dance movements comprising a section of a pattern

phrase

verb

phrased; phrasing

Definition of phrase (Entry 2 of 2)

transitive verb

1a : to express in words or in appropriate or telling terms

b : to designate by a descriptive word or phrase

2 : to divide into melodic phrases

Synonyms More Example Sentences Learn More about phrase

Keep scrolling for more

Examples of phrase in a Sentence

Noun

Answer the questions in complete sentences, not phrases. She used the phrase “I strongly believe” too many times in her speech. Underline the key words or phrases in the paragraph. To borrow a phrase from my mother, I spend too much time “watching the boob tube” and not enough time outside.

Verb

He phrased his version of the story in a way that made him look good. The question was awkwardly phrased. The singer phrased the music beautifully.

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun

The first mention of such a practice dates back to the early 1900s, and since then a few notable people have been known to invoke some form of the magical phrase. — Aj Willingham, CNN, "Rabbit rabbit! Why people say this good-luck phrase at the beginning of the month," 1 July 2019 Mychal Thompson used the phrase following Golden State’s Game 6 Finals defeat, and the former Lakers champion makes an interesting point. — Michael Shapiro, SI.com, "Five Big Questions Surrounding Kevin Durant's NBA Free Agency," 24 June 2019 Seemingly innocuous words and phrases that are regularly tossed around set us up for unhealthy approaches to food. — Ellie Krieger, Houston Chronicle, "Here are the diet terms that make dietitians cringe," 19 June 2019 And that's not just a turn of phrase, scientists say. — David Grossman, Popular Mechanics, "Study: If You Played Pokémon As a Kid, You Have Pokémon Brain As an Adult," 14 June 2019 Like other influencers, Gabriel also created his own merch line, full of apparel that's been designed with his catch phrases. — Jasmine Gomez, Seventeen, "Gabriel Zamora's Net Worth Will Make Your Jaw Drop," 17 May 2019 Glamour: In 2018, women really owned it—in so many senses of the phrase. — Krystin Arneson, Glamour, "Amber Heard Is Really Sick of the Dumb Blonde Cliché," 6 Jan. 2019 Guzmán appropriated the phrase, but shed both Mariátegui’s sophistication of thought and his interest in Peru’s indigenous past and present. — Rachel Nolan, Harper's magazine, "A Jagged Scrap of History," 24 June 2019 The research could lead to chatbots that sound more human and might be scaled up to predict the funniness of phrases or sentences, which could lead to writers’ assistants for evaluating or even generating chucklers. — Matthew Hutson, Science | AAAS, "Bejesus! A cockamamie AI can predict which craptacular words you’ll find funny," 17 June 2019

Recent Examples on the Web: Verb

Effectively, that means he was fired, but the administration didn’t quite want to phrase it that way. — Zack Beauchamp, Vox, "Read Attorney General Jeff Sessions’s resignation letter," 7 Nov. 2018 But now this needs to be phrased as a question, rather than a certainty that such voters would never support him. — Joseph C. Sternberg, WSJ, "How an Accident Could Happen in Britain," 27 Sep. 2018 Aretha Franklin, the Queen of Soul who understood vocal harmony and phrasing perhaps better than any of her female pop and soul contemporaries, died Thursday. — Marc Myers, WSJ, "Aretha Franklin, the Queen of Soul, Dies," 16 Aug. 2018 All are expected to want a voice in Republican strategy for Trump in the midterms, adding only more chaos, as one White House official phrased it, to an already unruly presidency. — Anchorage Daily News, "Trump dismisses midterm threat, alarming GOP," 28 Apr. 2018 Why do people respond so differently depending on how a question is phrased? — Eric Vanepps, Time, "The Best Way to Get People to Tell the Truth, According to Science," 11 July 2018 The trick, of course, is phrasing your command correctly and knowing that browsing and comparison shopping is impossible. — Jefferson Graham, USA TODAY, "Shopping with Alexa on Amazon Prime day will be hard. These tricks make it easier," 13 July 2018 Robert: Keep a close ear and eye on how Bill Bradford phrases his answers in the police interview. — Dateline Nbc, NBC News, "At the Desk of: Robert Dean, Dateline Producer of ‘The Threat’," 6 July 2018 The piano part — clearly articulated and sensitively phrased by Anne-Marie McDermott — is not overly virtuosic but delights in its unexpected wanderings. — Christian Hertzog, sandiegouniontribune.com, "A rare, fiery performance of a Rebel ballet kicks off Mainly Mozart Festival," 10 June 2018

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

Keep scrolling for more

Learn More about phrase

Dictionary Entries near phrase

Statistics for phrase

Last Updated

11 Jul 2019

Look-up Popularity

Time Traveler for phrase

The first known use of phrase was in 1530

See more words from the same year

Keep scrolling for more

More Definitions for phrase

phrase

noun

English Language Learners Definition of phrase

(Entry 1 of 2)

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

: a brief expression that is commonly used

music : a short section of a longer piece of music

phrase

verb

English Language Learners Definition of phrase (Entry 2 of 2)

: to say (something) in a particular way

: to perform (a piece of music) with the notes grouped together in a particular way

See the full definition for phrase in the English Language Learners Dictionary

phrase

noun

\ ˈfrāz

Kids Definition of phrase

(Entry 1 of 2)

1 : a group of two or more words that express a single idea but do not form a complete sentence The group of words “out the door” in “they ran out the door” is a phrase.

2 : a brief expression that is commonly used