Word of the Day

: March 30, 2018

parlous

adjective PAHR-lus

What It Means

: full of danger or risk

parlous in Context

"Back in Venice, he was restoring an apartment of his own …, a stately edifice constructed … in the mid-1600s that had fallen into a parlous condition." — Hamish Bowles, Vogue, March 2018

"In 2007, el-Sayed established a small online newsletter to investigate corruption. When the conflict broke out, he took to writing about the parlous state of public utilities and the profiteering on both sides that followed." — James Harkin, Newsweek, 28 Aug. 2015

Did You Know?

Parlous is both a synonym and a derivative of perilous; it came to be as an alteration of perilous in Middle English. (Perilous is derived from the Anglo-French perilleus, which ultimately comes from the Latin word for "danger," perīculum.) Both words are documented in use from at least the 14th century. Seven centuries later, both remain in steady use, often modifying state or times; however, perilous is, by far, the preferred synonym. More than likely, this is from having the familiar peril as a base.