Link Centre Dictionary

Parthian

part·hian

UK/ˈpɑːθɪən/ US/ˈpɑɹθiən/ uncommon
adjective (2) noun (1)

adjective

1.

pertaining to Parthia or its people or language or culture

  • “Parthian archeology”
2.

delivered at the moment of parting as if in flight or retreat

  • “paused to deliver a parting shot at the door”
  • “a Parthian volley of expletives from Uncle Billy” Bret Harte
Synonyms
Similar

noun

1.

Origin

From Parthia + -an; in the sense of delivered as if in retreat, an allusion to the Parthian battle tactic of firing arrows backwards from horseback while apparently in retreat.

Phrases

  • Wiktionary’s coverage of Parthian terms

Related words

Broader terms

Pertaining to

Parts

WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.