paranymph
UK/ˈpaɹəˌnɪmf/US/ˈpæɹəˌnɪmf/
paranymph noun: a friend of the bridegroom; a best man; a bridesmaid.
Noun
paranymph (plural paranymphs)
- A friend of the bridegroom; a best man; a bridesmaid.
- Thy Paranymph, worthleſs to thee compar'd, […]1671, John Milton, “Samson Agonistes, […].”, in Paradise Regain’d. A Poem. In IV Books. To which is Added, Samson Agonistes, London: […] J[ohn] M[acock] for John Starkey […], →OCLC, page 63, line 631
- An ally or spokesman; someone who speaks in support of someone else.
- But it is the basest of all when lust is the paranymph, and solicits the suit, and makes the contract, and joins the hands; […]1653, “Twenty-five Sermons Preached at Golden Grove; Being for the Winter Half-year, […]: Sermon XVII. The Marriage Ring; or, The Mysteriousness and Duties of Marriage. Part I.”, in Reginald Heber...
Forms of paranymph
| plural | paranymphs |
|---|
Origin of paranymph
From Middle French paranymphe, from Latin paranymphus, from Ancient Greek παράνυμφος (paránumphos, “friend of bridegroom”), from παρα- (para-, “para-”) + νύμφη (númphē, “bride”).
Questions about paranymph
- What does paranymph mean?
- Paranymph means a friend of the bridegroom; a best man; a bridesmaid.
- What part of speech is paranymph?
- Paranymph is a noun.
- How do you pronounce paranymph?
- Paranymph is pronounced /ˈpaɹəˌnɪmf/ (UK).
- What is the plural of paranymph?
- The plural of paranymph is paranymphs.
Words near paranymph in the dictionary
Source and license
Adapted from Wiktionary: paranymph (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.
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