: 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
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 performance.—
Margaret Willis
Margaret Willis2
: a made-up story usually designed to mislead
Don't fall for the fairy tale going around that offshore drilling will lessen our dependence on foreign oil …—Reginald T. Dogan
Reginald T. DoganExamples 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
Cu Fleshman, Travel + Leisure, 14 Nov. 2025
In a long sequence after intermission, the community performs a fairy-tale pageant, supposedly written by Peter and the kids, for Will (also Pecinka, in less hair and slicker clothes), Peter’s enigmatic brother who has in fact turned up in search of him.
—Sara Holdren, Vulture, 10 Nov. 2025
Liza Esquibias, PEOPLE, 13 Nov. 2025
Among the international premieres will be Paul Urkijo Alijo’s dark Basque fairy tale Gaua and Gamer Girls from directors Veronica Bassetto and Sophie Yang.
—Georg Szalai, HollywoodReporter, 13 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for fairy-tale
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Adjective
Part of it has to do with Solvang’s fairy-tale-like appearance—after all, the downtown shops and restaurants already look like something straight out of a Christmas story.
—Cu Fleshman, Travel + Leisure, 14 Nov. 2025
In a long sequence after intermission, the community performs a fairy-tale pageant, supposedly written by Peter and the kids, for Will (also Pecinka, in less hair and slicker clothes), Peter’s enigmatic brother who has in fact turned up in search of him.
—Sara Holdren, Vulture, 10 Nov. 2025
Noun
There was a hope for a commitment and to take this fairy tale into a happily ever after.
—Liza Esquibias, PEOPLE, 13 Nov. 2025
Among the international premieres will be Paul Urkijo Alijo’s dark Basque fairy tale Gaua and Gamer Girls from directors Veronica Bassetto and Sophie Yang.
—Georg Szalai, HollywoodReporter, 13 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for fairy-tale
Cite this Entry
“Fairy-tale.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/fairy-tale. Accessed 21 Nov. 2025.
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