Webster's English Dictionary

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parallel

Cross references:
  1. similar               
 
1. par.al.lel \'par-*-.lel, -l*l\ aj [L parallelus, fr. Gk paralle-los, fr. 
   para beside + al]le-lo-n of one another, fr. allos ... allos one ... 
   another, fr. allos other - more at PARA-, ELSE 1a: extending in the same 
   direction, everywhere equidistant, and not meeti ng {~ rows of trees} 1b: 
   everywhere equally distant {concentric spheres are ~}  2a: having parallel 
   sides {a ~ reamer}  2b: being or relating to an electrical circuit having a 
   number of conducto rs in parallel 3a: similar, analogous, or interdependent 
   in tendency or development  3b: readily compared : COMPANION  3c: having 
   corresponding syntactical elements  3d: keeping the same distance apart in 
   musical pitch {~ voice part s}
2. parallel n 1a: a parallel line, curve, or surface  1b1: one of the 
   imaginary circles on the surface of the earth paralleling t he equator and 
   making the latitude 1b2: the corresponding line on a globe or map  1c: a 
   character <parallel> used in printing as the fifth in series of t he 
   reference marks 2a: something equal or similar in all essential particulars 
   : COUNTERP ART 2b: SIMILARITY, ANALOGUE  3: a tracing of similarity  4a: 
   the state of being physically parallel : PARALLELISM  4b: the arrangement 
   of electrical devices in which all positive poles, elec trodes, and 
   terminals are joined to one conductor and all negative ones to another 
   conductor so that each unit is in effect on a parallel branch
3. parallel vt 1: to indicate analogy of : COMPARE  2a: to show something 
   equal to : MATCH  2b: to correspond to  3: to place so as to be parallel in 
   direction with something  4: to extend, run, or move in a direction 
   parallel to 
4. parallel av : in a parallel manner