means A lightweight, often decorative handheld canopy used to shield oneself from the sun rather than the rain.

from From French parasol, borrowed from Italian parasole — literally 'for the sun,' stitched together from para- 'to guard against' (from parare, 'to shield') and sole 'sun' (from Latin sol). It's the sun-blocking twin of parapluie, 'against the rain,' and shares its protective para- with words like parachute, which guards against the fall.