| Term | Definition |
| paladin | a heroic champion |
| palindrome | reads same backwards as forward |
| panacea | a cure for all ills |
| pandemic | describes a prevelance (very common) |
| panoply | an array of something |
| paraclete | a person called to advocate, intercede, mediate |
| paradigm | model example, standard for comparison |
| paroxysm | an outburst of emotion |
| pathetic fallacy | attribution of human emotions to nature |
| pathos | passion and emotion |
| patronize | to do business with, to condescend |
| penicil | short bristly tufts of fur on caterpillar (paint brush bristles) |
| peremptory | the tone of dictator/authority figure |
| perfidious | disloyal, treachourous, betraying |
| perfunctory | routine, automatic, done without thought or emotion |