Etymograph

English

parol

Parol comes from Middle French parole ‘word’, from Latin parabola ‘a comparison, illustration, likeness’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *gʷelH- ‘to hit by throwing’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*gʷelH-1‘to hit by throwing’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*gʷl̥-ne-h₁-1reconstructed
  3. Proto-Hellenicc. 2200–1600 BCE*gʷəlnō1reconstructed
  4. Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEβάλλω2‘to throw’
  5. Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEπαραβάλλω3‘to set side by side’
  6. Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEπαραβολή4parabolḗ‘a placing of two things side by side, juxtaposition’
  7. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEparabola4‘a comparison, illustration, likeness’
  8. Middle Frenchc. 1400–1600parole4‘word’
  9. Englishearliest quotation 1765–1769parol4

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Ancient Greek βάλλω
  2. 2 Wiktionary, Ancient Greek παραβάλλω
  3. 3 Wiktionary, Ancient Greek παραβολή
  4. 4 Wiktionary, English parol
  5. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1765–1769, William Blackstone, Commentaries on the Laws of England: “Leases , like other conveyances , were good at…”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*gʷelH-Wiktionary, Ancient Greek βάλλω‘to hit by throwing’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*gʷl̥-ne-h₁-Wiktionary, Ancient Greek βάλλωreconstructed
  3. Proto-Hellenicc. 2200–1600 BCE*gʷəlnōWiktionary, Ancient Greek βάλλωreconstructed
  4. Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEβάλλωWiktionary, Ancient Greek παραβάλλω‘to throw’
  5. Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEπαραβάλλωWiktionary, Ancient Greek παραβολή‘to set side by side’
  6. Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEπαραβολήWiktionary, English parolparabolḗ‘a placing of two things side by side, juxtaposition’
  7. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEparabolaWiktionary, English parol‘a comparison, illustration, likeness’
  8. Middle Frenchc. 1400–1600paroleWiktionary, English parol‘word’
  9. Englishearliest quotation 1765–1769parolWiktionary, English parol. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1765–1769, William Blackstone, Commentaries on the Laws of England: “Leases , like other conveyances , were good at…”

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *gʷelH- ‘to hit by throwing’

ball, quail, quill, quell, obelisk, pul, 63 more

through Proto-Hellenic *gʷəlnō

symbolic, ballistic, ballista, symbolist, 34 more

through Ancient Greek βάλλω ‘to throw’

problem, devil, symbol, emblem, metabolic, hyperbolic, embolism, anabolic, metabolize, hyperbola, 33 more

through Ancient Greek παραβολή ‘a placing of two things side by side,…’

parabolic, palaver, 4 more

through Latin parabola ‘a comparison, illustration, likeness’

parliament, parable, parley, parabola, 3 more

Another origin of parol

  1. Egyptianc. 3200 BCE–600 CEḥrḥr‘to guard’uncertain
  2. Demotic Egyptianmodernḥrḥ‘to protect’uncertain
  3. Copticmodernⲁⲣⲉϩ‘guard’uncertain
  4. Copticmodernⲫⲁⲣⲉϩphareh‘the guard’uncertain
  5. Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEΦάρος
  6. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEpharus‘lighthouse’
  7. Spanishc. 1500–presentfarol‘lantern’
  8. Tagalogmodernparol‘a parol’
  9. Englishtodayparol

Today it means

adj Word of mouth.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “parol”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Ancient Greek βάλλω, Ancient Greek παραβάλλω, Ancient Greek παραβολή. By Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0, via kaikki.org (dump of Oct 3 2026); text adapted and restructured. Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word. License.

Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *gʷelH- / parol

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