# paragraph

Pronunciation: US say "PA-ruh-graf" /ˈpæɹəɡɹæf/; UK say "PA-ruh-grahf" /ˈpæɹəɡɹɑːf/

## Noun

1. A passage of text that begins on a new line, sometimes with the first line indented, usually marking a change of topic.
   - Simple: A block of text that starts on a new line and usually begins a new idea.
   - _The opening paragraph sets out the writer's main argument._
   - _He reorganized the chapter into shorter paragraphs for easier reading._
3. A brief article, notice, or announcement, such as one printed in a newspaper.
   - Simple: A short piece of writing in a newspaper that gives one small bit of news.
   - _A small paragraph in the evening edition reported the council's decision._
   - _He found the engagement notice tucked into a paragraph near the back pages._
5. A marginal annotation or symbol highlighting something in the text, such as the start of a new topic.
   - Simple: A mark written in the margin of a page to point out something, such as a change of subject.
   - _The scribe added a paragraph in the margin wherever the argument turned._
   - _A red paragraph in the margin guided readers to the next topic._
6. An offset of 16 bytes, used as a unit in Intel memory architectures.
   - Simple: A small unit of computer memory equal to 16 bytes.
   - _A memory segment in this architecture always begins on a paragraph boundary._
   - _The loader rounded each block up to the next paragraph, wasting a few bytes._

## Verb

2. To divide a piece of writing into paragraphs, grouping the text by topic.
   - Simple: To break a piece of writing into separate paragraphs.
   - _Good writers paragraph their arguments to guide the reader through each point._
   - _She paragraphed the transcript so that each speaker began a new block._
4. To publish a brief article, notice, or announcement about something, as in a newspaper.
   - Simple: To print a short notice or announcement about someone or something in a newspaper.
   - _The gossip columnist paragraphed every celebrity sighting she could confirm._
   - _Country newspapers would paragraph any visitor of note who passed through town._

## Origin

From Middle English paragraf, via Middle French paragraphe and Latin paragraphus ("sign for the start of a new section"), from Ancient Greek παράγραφος (parágraphos), formed from παρά (pará, "beside") and γράφω (gráphō, "I write"). It is a doublet of paragraphos.

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/paragraph (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).