How to use parlay in a sentence

12 example sentences · verb, noun

Parlay means to carry forward the stake and winnings from a bet on to a subsequent wager or series of wagers. Example: “Shall we parlay the value of our products?”

Examples of parlay by meaning

verbTo increase (an asset, money, etc.) by gambling or investing in a daring manner.

Shall we parlay the value of our products?

verbTo convert (a situation, thing, etc.) into something better.

Guatemala has remained a society organized to harness an impoverished, segmented rural labor force for the production of exports that a small landowning elite, in partnership with foreign commercial interests, parlays into profit in world markets.1984, Laurel Herbenar Bossen, “Appendix One: Historical Background of Guatemala”, in The Redivision of Labor: Women and Economic Choice in...
Victoria's Secret, the American retailer that once parlayed a “sex sells” strategy into a $7bn-revenue-empire of underwear, is heading back to TV screens.2023 September 30, Chantal Fernandez, “Changing the formula”, in FT Weekend (Life & Arts section), London: The Financial Times Ltd., →ISSN...

nounA bet or series of bets where the stake and winnings are cumulatively carried forward; an accumulator.

Actually, any time you figure the probability that all of a number of events (each with its own separate probability) will occur you are figuring a parlay.2005 March, David Sklansky, “Mathematics of Parlays”, in Getting the Best of It, Las Vegas, Nev.: Two Plus Two Publishing, →ISBN, part 1...

More sentences with parlay

She had, through viciousness and cunning, parlayed her unique value into a position of power.2008, BioWare, Mass Effect (Science Fiction), Redwood City: Electronic Arts, →ISBN, →OCLC, PC, scene: Canrum. From the entry lie with
Popular Instapoets such as Indian-Canadian Rupi Kaur have parlayed their online success into multi-book contracts with print publishers.2020, Simon Murray, Introduction to Contemporary Print Culture: Books as Media, unnumbered page. From the entry Instapoet
Prince has cannily parlayed his jaundiced view of society, especially its macho subcultures, into an array of market-friendly paintings and sculpture.2007 September 9, Roberta Smith, “Solo Museum Shows: Not the Usual Suspects”, in New York Times. From the entry rephotography
RESTON MOVED QUICKLY to parlay his new prominence by wiring himself into high-level Washington sources, and not just Republicans like Vandenberg.2006, John F. Stacks, Scotty: James B. Reston and the Rise and Fall of American Journalism, U of Nebraska Press, →ISBN, page 102. From the entry wire
Well, more than 16 million people didn’t miss it, and the family parlayed the viralness into a G-rated franchise that continues at 9 p.m.2015 October 22, Neil Genzlinger, “10 Unconventional Halloween Diversions”, in New York Times. From the entry viralness
At the parlay, Tyrion also tries to claim Tywin’s murder was self-defense, which holds some water, and despite Jaime’s anger, I suspect he can see it from that side.2017 August 13, Brandon Nowalk, “Oldtown offers one last game-changing secret as Game Of Thrones goes behind enemy lines (newbies)”, in…. From the entry hold water
The first 30 minutes of this 79-minute behemoth—a model for season eight’s reportedly extended run-times—are a single set piece, the big parlay in the Dragon Pit at King’s Landing.2017 August 27, Brandon Nowalk, “Game Of Thrones slows down for the longest, and best, episode of the season (newbies)”, in The Onion AV…. From the entry set piece
Other than this defect, the payoffs are remarkably similar; as it is, if your choice is between the daily double and the parlay, bet on the former!1991, Peter Asch, Richard E. Quandt, Racetrack Betting: The Professor's Guide to Strategies, →ISBN, page 169. From the entry daily double

Meaning of parlay

verb To carry forward the stake and winnings from a bet on to a subsequent wager or series of wagers.
verb To increase (an asset, money, etc.) by gambling or investing in a daring manner.
verb To convert (a situation, thing, etc.) into something better.

Full definition of parlay

Questions about parlay in a sentence

How do you use parlay in a sentence?: Parlay is used as a verb and noun. For example: “Shall we parlay the value of our products?”
What is a short sentence with parlay?: “Shall we parlay the value of our products?”
What does parlay mean?: Parlay means to carry forward the stake and winnings from a bet on to a subsequent wager or series of wagers.

Adapted from Wiktionary: parlay (page history and authors) and the entries each sentence comes from. Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws chose the sentences, left out offensive ones and quotations older than 1900, and marked the word in each. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

Last updated: 2026-09-02

Cite this page: “How to use parlay in a sentence.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/sentences/parlay. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.