Dictionary:
par·ry (păr'ē)  |
[Probably from French parez, imperative of parer, to defend, from Italian parare, from Latin parāre, to prepare.]
| Thesaurus: parry |
verb
| Antonyms: parry |
Definition: ward off, circumvent
Antonyms: deal with, face, meet
| Word Tutor: parry |
Politicians tend to parry the difficult questions they are asked.
| Wikipedia: Parry (fencing) |
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A parry is a fencing bladework manoeuvre intended to deflect or block an incoming attack.
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To execute a parry, fencers strike the opponent's foible, or the area near the tip of the blade, with their forte, or the part of the blade near the handle of the sword. This deflects the opponent's blade away from them, protecting them and placing them in a good position to strike back. Approximations of the precise parries are made often during bouts, but are usually accurate enough to be classed as parries.
In épée, because of absence of priority rules (see right-of-way), a parry can be classed as anything that prevents the opponent's attack from landing.
The primary function of a parry is to prevent an opponent's attack from landing, although other techniques - like simply dodging the opponent's attack - are also used. However, the rules governing the parry give it more tactical significance:
In foil and sabre, there is a rule known as priority, or right-of-way. To gain a point, a fencer must land a hit while having the priority. The first fencer to commence an attack often gains the priority. If the attack results in a successful hit, the fencer gains a point. However, if the attack fails, the priority is transferred to the defender. Defending with a parry causes the attack to fail, both physically and as far as the priority rule is concerned. Taking a parry, therefore, means that the attacker is in an awkward position (with their arm extended and sometimes off-balance), having just committed to attacking, and the defender has the priority, as well as the best position to riposte, or strike after parrying.
More advanced fencers can, instead of immediately riposting after successfully taking a parry, initiate a prise de fer ("taking of the blade") in which they move the opponent's blade to a different position and then hit them.
| Name | Description (foil and épée) | Description (sabre) | Diagram |
|---|---|---|---|
| Prime - Parry 1 | Blade down and to the inside of the nipple, wrist pronated. Sometimes known as the "Looking at your watch" Parry. | Blade points down and cutting edge faces away from the fencer's flank side. | |
| Seconde - Parry 2 | Blade down and to the outside, wrist pronated. | Arm half-extended laterally, blade pointing forward with downward incline, cutting edge facing towards fencer's flank side. | |
| Tierce - Parry 3 | Blade up and to the outside, wrist pronated. Not often used in either Foil or Épée. | Standard en garde but rotated so cutting edge faces further in the flank direction, i.e. guard kept low, sword upright with a slight forward tilt, cutting edge facing 45º to the flank side. | |
| Quarte - Parry 4 | Blade up and to the inside, wrist supinated.
This parry can be Lateral or Circular The Lateral Parry is from Sixte to Quarte. The Circular Parry, also known as "Counter Quarte", is a D shaped parry, dropping the points and bringing it up on the inside bringing your point back towards your En Guard line. |
Similar to tierce on the chest side or prime flipped upside-down; guard low, cutting edge facing away from flank, sword upright with slight chest-direction tilt. | |
| Quinte - Parry 5 | Blade up and to the inside, wrist pronated. Not often used in Foil or Épée | Blade held up almost horizontally with bent arm, cutting edge facing upward, blade has a slight tilt meaning that the point is higher than the guard. | |
| Sixte - Parry 6 | Blade up and to the outside, wrist supinated.
This parry can be Lateral or Circular. The Lateral Parry is from Quarte to Sixte. The Circular Parry, also known as "Counter Sixte", is a D shaped parry, dropping the points and bringing it up on the inside bringing your point back towards your En Guard line. |
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| Septime - Parry 7 | Blade down and to the inside, wrist supinated. Point dropped, the wrist is in the same place as in Quarte.
This parry is semi-circular, the point is dropped from Quarte to Septime (or the opposite). |
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| Octave - Parry 8 | Blade down and to the outside, wrist supinated. Point is dropped, the wrist is in the same place as in Sixte.
This parry is semi-circular, the point is dropped from Sixte to Octave (or the opposite). |
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| Neuvieme - Parry 9 | Blade a little like a high Sixte or Sabre Quinte parry. The opponent's blade is transported upwards and a riposte is usually made to the opponent's chest whilst ducking. |
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| Translations: Parry |
Dansk (Danish)
v. tr. - afparere, afbøde
v. intr. - afpareres
n. - parade, afparering
Nederlands (Dutch)
afweren (aanval), handig ontwijken (vraag etc.), ontwijking
Français (French)
v. tr. - (Sport) parer, éluder
v. intr. - parer (escrime, boxe)
n. - (Sport) parade, riposte
Deutsch (German)
v. - parieren, abwehren
n. - Parade, Abwehr
Ελληνική (Greek)
v. - αποκρούω, αποφεύγω (έντεχνα/επιδέξια), παρακάμπτω, ξεφεύγω
n. - απόκρουση (έντεχνη/επιδέξια αποφυγή)
Italiano (Italian)
parare, schivare, eludere
Português (Portuguese)
v. - aparar golpes (Desp.), defender
n. - parada (f) (esgrima)
Русский (Russian)
парировать, отбить
Español (Spanish)
v. tr. - parar, quitar, rechazar, eludir
v. intr. - esquivar, eludir
n. - parada, quite, reparo, esquive
Svenska (Swedish)
v. - parera, avvärja
n. - parering, avvärjning
中文（简体）(Chinese (Simplified))
挡开, 避开, 回避, 挡开武器, 遁词
中文（繁體）(Chinese (Traditional))
v. tr. - 擋開, 避開, 回避
v. intr. - 擋開武器, 回避
n. - 擋開, 避開, 遁詞, 回避
한국어 (Korean)
v. tr. - 받아넘기다, 회피하다, 얼버무리다
v. intr. - 피하다, 방어하다
n. - 받아넘김, 둘러댐, 핑계
日本語 (Japanese)
n. - かわし, 受け流し, 剣の払い, 言い逃れ
v. - かわす, 受け流す
العربيه (Arabic)
(فعل) يتحاشى, يتفادى (الاسم) محاشاة, تفادي
עברית (Hebrew)
v. tr. - הדף, תימנע
v. intr. - התחמק מ-
n. - הדיפה, התחמקות, תנועת הגנה, תימנוע
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