phrase

n.

1. A sequence of words intended to have meaning.
2. 1. A characteristic way or mode of expression.
   2. A brief, apt, and cogent expression.
3. A word or group of words read or spoken as a unit and separated by pauses or other junctures.
4. Grammar. Two or more words in sequence that form a syntactic unit that is less than a complete sentence.
5. Music. A short passage or segment, often consisting of four measures or forming part of a larger unit.
6. A series of dance movements forming a unit in a choreographic pattern.

v., phrased, phras·ing, phras·es.

v.tr.

1. To express orally or in writing: The speaker phrased several opinions.
2. To pace or mark off (something read aloud or spoken) by pauses.
3. Music.
   1. To divide (a passage) into phrases.
   2. To combine (notes) in a phrase.

v.intr.

1. To make or render phrases, as in reading aloud.
2. Music. To perform a passage with the correct phrasing.

[Latin phrasis, diction, from Greek, speech, diction, phrase, from phrazein, to point out, show.]

phrasal phras'al adj.
phrasally phras'al·ly adv.

noun

1. A word or group of words forming a unit and conveying meaning: expression, locution. See words.
2. Choice of words and the way in which they are used: diction, parlance, phraseology, phrasing, verbalism, wordage, wording. See words.

verb

To convey in language or words of a particular form: couch, express, formulate, put, word. See words.

A term used for short musical units of various lengths, generally regarded as longer than a motif but shorter than a period. It carries a melodic connotation: ‘phrasing’ is applied to the subdivision of a melodic line.

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A group of grammatically connected words within a sentence: “One council member left in a huff”; “She got much satisfaction from planting daffodil bulbs.” Unlike clauses, phrases do not have both a subject and a predicate.

A single musical idea, or element. Usually very short, often consisting of only one or two measures.

IN BRIEF: A group of words. Also: A short musical expression.

Late upon the third day, at the very moment when, at sunset . . . there flashed upon my mind, unforeseen and unsought, the phrase 'Reverence for Life'. — Albert Schweitzer (1875-1965)

Tutor's tip: A "phrase" is a group of words, smaller than a sentence. "Frays" are fights, "fraze" is a tool, and "fraise" are stakes used in fortifications.

This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)

Dansk (Danish)
n. - vending , ordgruppe
v. tr. - formulere, frasere
v. intr. - formuleres, fraseres

idioms:

• phrase book    parlør
• turn a phrase    dreje en sætning
• turn of phrase    måde at udtrykke sig på

Nederlands (Dutch)
zegswijze, idiomatische uitdrukking, woordgroep, muzikale frase, serie danspassen, formuleren, fraseren

Français (French)
n. - (gén) expression, (Ling) locution, (Ling) syntagme, (Mus) phrase
v. tr. - exprimer, formuler, (Mus) phraser
v. intr. - formuler, s'exprimer, être formulé, (Mus) phraser

idioms:

• phrase book    manuel de conversation
• turn a phrase    tourner une phrase
• turn of phrase    tournure de phrase

Deutsch (German)
n. - Redewendung, Phrase
v. - formulieren, phrasieren

idioms:

• phrase book    Sprachführer
• turn a phrase    einen Satz bilden od. abrunden
• turn of phrase    Ausdrucksweise

Ελληνική (Greek)
n. - φράση
v. - διατυπώνω (φραστικώς), εκφράζω

idioms:

• phrase book    γλωσσάριο ή λεξικό ιδιωματικών φράσεων
• turn a phrase    διατυπώνω με σαφήνεια
• turn of phrase    εκφραστική διατύπωση, ευχέρεια λόγου

Italiano (Italian)
formulare, esprimere, frase

idioms:

• phrase book    frasario

Português (Portuguese)
n. - frase (f), expressão (f), fraseologia (f)
v. - frasear, exprimir

idioms:

• phrase book    livro de expressões em língua estrangeira
• turn a phrase    fazer uma colocação
• turn of phrase    modo de expressar-se

Русский (Russian)
формулировать, фраза, оборот

idioms:

• phrase book    разговорник
• turn a phrase    стиль формулировать фразу
• turn of phrase    формулировка фразы

Español (Spanish)
n. - frase, expresión, locución, sintagma
v. tr. - expresar, redactar, frasear
v. intr. - frasear

idioms:

• phrase book    repertorio de expresiones
• turn a phrase    dar expresión pintoresca a una frase
• turn of phrase    giro, expresión

Svenska (Swedish)
n. - fras, uttryck, ordvändning
v. - uttrycka, formulera

中文（简体）(Chinese (Simplified))
片语, 成语, 惯用语, 用短语表达, 措辞, 用语, 分成短句或乐句

idioms:

• phrase book    成语集
• turn a phrase    善于词令
• turn of phrase    表述方式, 措辞

中文（繁體）(Chinese (Traditional))
n. - 片語, 成語, 慣用語
v. tr. - 用短語表達
v. intr. - 措辭, 用語, 分成短句或樂句

idioms:

• phrase book    成語集
• turn a phrase    善於詞令
• turn of phrase    表述方式, 措辭

한국어 (Korean)
n. - (문법) 구, 말씨, 명언
v. tr. - 말로 나타내다, ...이라고 부르다, 칭찬하다
v. intr. - 표현하다, (악보를) 악구로 구분하다

idioms:

• turn a phrase    말로 표현하다
• turn of phrase    경구를 멋지게 짜내다

日本語 (Japanese)
n. - 句, 成句, 熟語, 名言, ことば遣い, 楽句
v. - ことばで表す, 楽句に分ける

idioms:

• phrase book    外国語慣用句集

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(الاسم) عبارة, تعبير, طريقه تعبيريه, صياغه (فعل) يعبر, يصوغ لغويا‏

עברית (Hebrew)
n. - ‮ניב, ביטוי, פתגם, פסוק (במוסיקה), פרזה, קבוצת מלים בעלת משמעות במשפט שאינה כוללת נושא ונשוא, דרך ביטוי‬
v. tr. - ‮ניסח, הביע במלים, חילק משפט ליחידות כדי להעביר את משמעות המכלול‬
v. intr. - ‮ביצע קטע עם פיסוק נכון (מוסיקה)‬

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