parable

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

Updated on: 18 Apr 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

Theranos this week laid off all but about two dozen of its remaining employees — the latest indignity for the once-fabulously rich blood-testing company that’s become a parable for Silicon Valley hubris.

— rebecca robbins, STAT, "‘Therabros’ and ‘disappeared’ staffers: the 8 juiciest things we learned from John Carreyrou’s new Theranos book," 12 Apr. 2018
As a result, white supremacists interpret scriptures and spiritual parables through the lens of racial discrimination and hate.

— deneen l. brown, Washington Post, "The preacher who used Christianity to revive the Ku Klux Klan," 10 Apr. 2018
As a result, white supremacists interpret scriptures and spiritual parables through the lens of racial discrimination and hate.

— the washington post, AL.com, "An Alabama-born preacher helped revive the KKK in 1915," 10 Apr. 2018
The American playwright presented the 1953 play as a parable about the dangers of McCarthyism, when the government ostracized suspected Communists who often lost their jobs or were even imprisoned.

— rachel kaufman, Smithsonian, "Welcome to Salem, Witches: “Timeless” Season 2, Episode 4, Recapped," 9 Apr. 2018
A month earlier Hagan had shared with the team a more traditional parable, that of the barren fig tree from the gospel of Luke.

— dan greene, SI.com, "Villanova's Dominance Proves the Power of a Well-Built Program," 3 Apr. 2018
There’s a raucous, near-unbelievable parable about the American dream somewhere in there.

— jacob kastrenakes, The Verge, "New trailers: Westworld season 2, The Handmaid’s Tale, and more," 31 Mar. 2018
That setback in 2012 now serves as a parable of resilience in the legend Avenatti has been crafting about himself — both with a string of multimillion-dollar jury verdicts and with his brash, almost nonstop cable news appearances.

— washington post, BostonGlobe.com, "Stormy Daniels’ attorney, an ‘adrenaline junkie,’ confronts President Trump," 26 Mar. 2018
The Ramblers are less of a parable and more of a paragon for the beauty of college basketball.

— christopher l. gasper, BostonGlobe.com, "Sister Jean makes Final Four a blessed event," 31 Mar. 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

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