parable

noun par·a·ble \ ˈper-ə-bəl , ˈpa-rə- \

|Updated on: 12 Jun 2018

Definition of parable

: a usually short fictitious story that illustrates a moral attitude or a religious principle

the Biblical parable of the Good Samaritan

; also : something (such as a news story or a series of real events) likened to a parable in providing an instructive example or lesson

In some ways, his life is a parable of the corrupting effect of great wealth, for he always assumed that everyone was after his money and out to cheat him.
—Gavin Stamp

By the summer of 2014, 380 House members and 74 senators had signed on as sponsors …. The ABLE Act had become a force. Yet in a parable of how Washington works, the bill still had a long way to go.
—Gail Russell Chaddock

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Examples of parable in a Sentence

He told the children a parable about the importance of forgiveness.
the parable of the Good Samaritan

Recent Examples of parable from the Web

Taken as one, the story has the precision of a parable.

— andrew klavan, WSJ, "A Tale of Two Indecencies Shows How We Got Trump," 4 June 2018
But to modern readers, other aspects of Zamyatin’s multifarious parable will seem more relevant.

— The Economist, "An eerie dystopian prophecy by a disillusioned Bolshevik," 31 May 2018
Doyle pruned the melodramatic musical of all its literal trappings and invited his ensemble to contact the spiritual essence of Alice Walker’s parable.

— charles mcnulty, latimes.com, "'The Color Purple' national tour turns down the wattage — and burns a little less brightly," 30 May 2018
And yet, the Trump White House has refused to apologize for the remark, continues to employ Sadler and, in the most appalling twist, attempted to make the entire episode a parable of leaking as opposed to one of classlessness.

— chris cillizza, CNN, "The Trump administration is trying to turn the McCain death joke into a 'leak' scandal," 14 May 2018
From the Garden of Eden through Noah and his Ark, into the New Testament and the parables of Jesus, there are many fascinating accounts.

— glenna christensen, idahostatesman, "Learn from the past, but don't live in it, for faith is about the future | Idaho Statesman," 26 Apr. 2018
Ultimately, the lessons of the past come to us in the form of parables, stories that hint at deeper truths but do not tell us exactly what to do.

— dagomar degroot, Washington Post, "Some places flourished in the Little Ice Age. There are lessons for us now.," 19 Feb. 2018
Their actions, in Leoni and Ray’s envisioning, aren’t the faraway stuff of ancient religious parable but part of the simmering revolutions of our own time.

— lily janiak, San Francisco Chronicle, "‘Shesus’ lives — and rocks — in Ray of Light’s ‘Superstar’," 19 May 2018
Even today, ancient parables like this still resonate.

— Allure, "Women From Three Faith Communities Share How Their Long Hair and Spirituality Are Connected," 17 May 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'parable.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Did You Know?

Parable comes to us via Anglo-French from the Late Latin word parabola, which in turn comes from Greek parabolē, meaning "comparison." The word parabola may look familiar if you remember your geometry. The mathematical "parabola" refers to a kind of comparison between a fixed point and a straight line, resulting in a parabolic curve; it came to English from New Latin (Latin as used since the end of the medieval period, especially in scientific description and classification). "Parable," however, descends from Late Latin (the Latin language used by writers in the 3rd to 6th centuries). The Late Latin term parabola referred to verbal comparisons: it essentially meant "allegory" or "speech." Other English descendants of Late Latin parabola are "parole" and "palaver."

Origin and Etymology of parable

Middle English, from Anglo-French, from Late Latin parabola, from Greek parabolē comparison, from paraballein to compare, from para- + ballein to throw — more at devil

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 14th century

in the meaning defined above

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