parentheses

noun

A clause, phrase or word which is inserted (usually for explanation or amplification) into a passage which is already grammatically complete, and usually marked off with brackets, commas or dashes.

Either of a pair of brackets, especially (mainly US) round brackets, ( and ) (used to enclose parenthetical material in a text).

(mathematics, logic) Such brackets as used to clarify expressions by grouping those terms affected by a common operator, or to enclose the components of a vector or the elements of a matrix.

(rhetoric) A digression; the use of such digressions.

Roots

parapara- · Greek · beside, beyond tithemi-thes · Greek · place, put

Synonyms & related words for parentheses

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Words related to parentheses

Explore words related to parentheses — words associated with it, words that go with it, and its nearest matches in meaning. Related words include parenthesis, brackets, parenthesize, parenthetical, parenthetic, bracketed, commas, unbracketed. Click any word to make it the center of the map and keep exploring the web of connections.

Where does parentheses come from?

The word parentheses breaks down into 2 roots of Greek origin: para-, from Greek para (“beside, beyond”); and -thes, from Greek tithemi (“place, put”). Explore each root to see other English words built from the same source.