parity 1
/par"i tee/ , n.
1. equality, as in amount, status, or character.
2. equivalence; correspondence; similarity; analogy.
3. Finance.
a. equivalence in value in the currency of another country.
b. equivalence in value at a fixed ratio between moneys of different metals.
4. Physics.
a. a property of a wave function, expressed as +1 or -1 and noting the relation of the given function to the function formed when each variable is replaced by its negative, +1 indicating that the functions are identical and -1 that the second function is the negative of the first.
b. Also called intrinsic parity . a number +1 or -1 assigned to each kind of elementary particle in such a way that the product of the parities of the particles in a system of particles multiplied by the parity of the wave function describing the system is unchanged when particles are created or annihilated.
5. a system of regulating prices of farm commodities, usually by government price supports, to provide farmers with the same purchasing power they had in a selected base period.
6. Computers. the condition of the number of items in a set, particularly the number of bits per byte or word, being either even or odd: used as a means for detecting certain errors.
[ 1565-75; paritas. See PAR 1 , -ITY ]
parity 2
/par"i tee/ , n. Obstet.
1. the condition or fact of having borne offspring.
2. para 5 (def. 1).
[ 1875-80; par ( ere ) to bring forth (cf. PARENT) + -ITY ]