French

Verb

parler

1. (intransitive) To speak or talk.

   Il a commencé à parler à l’âge de quatre ans. -

   He began to speak at the age of four.

   Ils ont parlé plusieurs heures avant d’aller se coucher.

   They spoke several hours before going to sleep.

2. (transitive) to be able to communicate in a language; to speak

   Elle parle couramment français. - She speaks French fluently

3. (heraldry) To cant; (of a coat of arms) to make a pun of its bearer's name.

   Armes parlantes.

Conjugation

Related terms

• parlement
• parleur
• parloir
• parlotte
• parole

Noun

parler m ‎(plural parlers)

1. parlance

See also

• bavarder
• discuter
• jacasser
• jaser

Middle French

Etymology

From Old French parler ‎(“to talk; to speak”), from Vulgar Latin *paraulare ‎(“to speak”), from Late Latin parabolare, from Latin parabola ‎(“comparison”), from Ancient Greek παραβολή ‎(parabolḗ), from παρά ‎(pará, “beside”) with βολή ‎(bolḗ, “throwing”).

Verb

parler

1. to speak; to talk.

Conjugation

• Middle French conjugation varies from one text to another. Hence, the following conjugation should be considered as typical, not as exhaustive.

Old French

Alternative forms

• paroler

Etymology

From Vulgar Latin *paraulare ‎(“to speak”), from Late Latin parabolare, from Latin parabola ‎(“comparison”), from Ancient Greek παραβολή ‎(parabolḗ), from παρά ‎(pará, “beside”) with βολή ‎(bolḗ, “throwing”).

Verb

parler

1. to speak; to talk

Conjugation

This verb conjugates as a first-group verb ending in -er. The forms that would normally end in *-ols, *-olt are modified to ous, out. This verb has a stressed present stem parol distinct from the unstressed stem parl. Old French conjugation varies significantly by date and by region. The following conjugation should be treated as a guide.

Descendants

• French: parler