parhelionSynonym of sun dog (“a bright spot in the sky, usually one of two on the parhelic circle on both sides of the sun (or occasionally above and below it), caused by the refraction of the sun's image through ice crystals”).
parhypateIn Ancient Greek musical theory, the lower-pitched of the two movable notes in the nearer tetrachord on a lyre, pitched lower than the lichanos and higher than the hypate.
parietal boneEither of two bones that together form the sides and top of the skull.
ParisiiA Celtic tribe of Gallia Lugdunensis, whose chief town was Lutetia; Paris, the capital of France, is named after them.
parnassianA papilionid butterfly of the holarctic alpine genus Parnassius or the subfamily Parnassiinae; an apollo butterfly.
parochial vicarA parish priest who assists the parish administrator. This is a priest who is assigned by the competent authority to assist the pastor in the pastoral ministry of a parish. Together as co-workers, the pastor and parochial vicar(s) carry out the functions of teaching, sanctifying and leading the people entrusted to their care. The parochial vicar is subject to the authority of the pastor.
ParopamisadaeThe people of Paropamisus in ancient Pakistan.
ParopamisusAn ancient region and satrapy in modern Afghanistan and Pakistan, ruled by the Greeks around the time of Alexander the Great and later ceded to Chandragupta Maurya.
-parousparous; relating to parity (the number of times a woman has given birth).
ParthenopeOne of the sirens, daughter of the god Achelous and the Muse Terpsichore.
partibusA note in the margin of a summons, giving the name and designation of the pursuer.
PartiumThe region located to the north and west of Transylvania.
partogramA graphical record of key maternal and fetal data during labour, intended to provide a record of progress and highlight any delay or deviation from normal.
parturifacientA medicine tending to cause parturition, or to give relief in childbirth.
parvanimityThe state or quality of having a little or ignoble mind; pettiness; meanness.
PatraeAn ancient city of Achaia situated on the coast, now Patras
patressAn adapting plate or mounting used to fix an object to a surface or a substrate where the difference in character between the object and that to which it is mounted prevents direct mounting, e.g. in fitting a flat panel to a curved surface.
patrialDerived from the name of a country, and designating an inhabitant of the country; gentile.
patria potestasThe legal power and rights of a Roman father over his children and descendants by virtue of his paternity.
pavonineOf or pertaining to the genus Pavo or its family Pavonidae, including the peafowl.
pavoniteA monoclinic-prismatic white mineral containing bismuth, copper, lead, silver, and sulfur.
Pax AmericanaThe period of relative peace in the Western world since the end of World War II in 1945, coinciding with the military and economic dominance of the United States.
paxillaAn ossicle in the endoderm of the aboral surface of some starfish
peculationThe wrongful appropriation or embezzlement of shared or public property, usually by a person entrusted with the guardianship of that property.
pedarianOne of a group of men eligible to the office of senator, but not yet chosen, who could sit and speak in the senate, but could not vote. Other authors suggest they could not even speak, but would stand on the side of the Senate with which they agreed most.