Parlous — Par lous, a. [For perlous, a contr. fr. perilous.] [1913 Webster] 1. Attended with peril; dangerous; as, a parlous cough. [Archaic] A parlous snuffing. Beau. & Fl. [1913 Webster] 2. Venturesome; bold; mischievous; keen. [Obs.] A parlous boy. Shak … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
parlous — index aleatory (perilous) Burton s Legal Thesaurus. William C. Burton. 2006 … Law dictionary
parlous — (adj.) late 14c., late Middle English contraction of PERILOUS (Cf. perilous) … Etymology dictionary
parlous — ► ADJECTIVE archaic or humorous ▪ dangerously uncertain; precarious. ORIGIN contraction of PERILOUS(Cf. ↑perilousness) … English terms dictionary
parlous — [pär′ləs] adj. [ME, contr. of perilous] 1. Literary perilous; dangerous; risky 2. Archaic dangerously clever; cunning, mischievous, shrewd, etc. adv. Archaic extremely; very … English World dictionary
parlous — 1. adjective a) Attended with peril; dangerous; risky. The situation became parlous when the weather made resupply impossible. b) Dire, terrible, appalling. Those manning the facility were in a parlous s … Wiktionary
parlous — [[t]pɑ͟ː(r)ləs[/t]] ADJ GRADED: usu ADJ n If something is in a parlous state, it is in a bad or dangerous condition. [FORMAL] ...the parlous state of our economy. Syn: dire … English dictionary
parlous — adjective Etymology: Middle English, alteration of perilous Date: 14th century 1. obsolete dangerously shrewd or cunning 2. full of danger or risk ; hazardous < the parlous state of the country > • parlously adverb … New Collegiate Dictionary
parlous — par|lous [ˈpa:ləs US ˈpa:r ] adj formal [Date: 1300 1400; Origin: perilous] in a very bad or dangerous condition ▪ The country s police force was in a parlous state in 1990 … Dictionary of contemporary English
parlous — par|lous [ parləs ] adjective VERY FORMAL full of dangers or difficulties: There is a general belief that the arts are in a parlous state … Usage of the words and phrases in modern English
