fairy-tale

1 of 2

adjective

: characteristic of or suitable to a fairy tale
especially : marked by seemingly unreal beauty, perfection, luck, or happiness
led a fairy-tale life
a store clerk's fairy-tale romance

fairy tale

2 of 2

noun

1
a
: a story (as for children) involving fantastic forces and beings (such as fairies, wizards, and goblins)
enjoyed the fairy tale "The Little Mermaid"

called also fairy story

b
: a story in which improbable events lead to a happy ending
those balletic fairy tales in which a new corps member steps in for an injured principal at the last minute and delivers a splendid performanceMargaret Willis
2
: a made-up story usually designed to mislead
an old-fashioned fairy tale depicting revolutionists as demigodsJonathan Zimmerman

Examples of fairy-tale in a Sentence

Noun the fairy tale about the sleeping princess Everything he told us about his happy marriage was just a fairy tale.
Recent Examples on the Web
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Adjective
Netflix doesn’t offer theme parks, decades’ worth of merchandise, or an extensive coterie of fairy-tale princesses for fans to dress up as every Halloween. Shirley Li, The Atlantic, 30 Sep. 2025 Prince William, Princess Kate and Rebirth Disinterest in the monarchy did not last, however, as the fairy-tale romance between Prince William and Princess Kate rekindled interest in the royals. Jack Royston, MSNBC Newsweek, 28 Sep. 2025
Noun
The wedding was fit for a fairy tale. Robin Raven, PEOPLE, 30 Sep. 2025 But in a new sit-down interview with CBS Sunday Morning‘s Lee Cowan over the weekend to promote her starring role in the upcoming remake of Kiss of the Spider Woman, Lopez opened up about how her fairy tale second chance and then subsequent second split with Affleck was actually a good thing. Gil Kaufman, Billboard, 29 Sep. 2025 See All Example Sentences for fairy-tale

Word History

First Known Use

Adjective

1904, in the meaning defined above

Noun

1635, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Time Traveler
The first known use of fairy-tale was in 1635

Browse Nearby Words

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Cite this Entry

“Fairy-tale.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/fairy-tale. Accessed 8 Oct. 2025.

Kids Definition

fairy tale

noun
1
: a simple children's story about imaginary beings

called also fairy story

2
: a made-up story usually meant to mislead
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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