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Parthian

PRONUNCIATION:

(PAHR-thee-uhn) 

MEANING:

adjective:
1. Relating to Parthia.
2. Delivered while retreating or departing, especially as a final remark.

ETYMOLOGY:

After the Parthians, people of Parthia, an ancient region corresponding roughly to modern northeastern Iran. Earliest documented use: c. 1400.

NOTES:

Parthians were expert mounted archers. Their specialty was firing arrows while in actual or feigned retreat, disrupting pursuing forces. The more familiar term, Parthian shot, is a synonym. Also see esprit d’escalier.

USAGE:

“[John Bolton’s] book is a Parthian machine gun salvo at the ‘Risen Bureaucrats’ of the State Department who defeated him, with their view that US interests are best served by recognising that other countries can have their own interests, and still be allies -- if you listen to them. Bolton famously did sticks, not carrots. And got diplomatic peanuts in return.”
Ian Williams; To See Ourselves As Others; The World Today (London, UK); Jan 2008.

See more usage examples of Parthian in Vocabulary.com’s dictionary.