proverbial
adjective
pro·ver·bi·al
prə-ˈvər-bē-əl 
1
: of, relating to, or resembling a proverb
2
: that has become a proverb or byword : commonly spoken of
the proverbial smoking gun
Examples of proverbial in a Sentence
Insanity roamed through her large midwestern tribe, cloistered in proverbial dark closets in gabled houses in areas of the country where no one else lived for miles and miles …
—
Lynne Tillman, Motion Sickness, 1991
I keep running across people who speak fondly about what they imagine to be the comforts of autocracy, who long for the assurances of the proverbial man on the white horse likely to do something hard and puritanical about the moral relativism that has made a mess of the cities, the schools, and prime-time television.
—Lewis H. Lapham, Harper's, November 1990
Lynne Tillman, Motion Sickness, 1991
I keep running across people who speak fondly about what they imagine to be the comforts of autocracy, who long for the assurances of the proverbial man on the white horse likely to do something hard and puritanical about the moral relativism that has made a mess of the cities, the schools, and prime-time television.
—Lewis H. Lapham, Harper's, November 1990
Recent Examples on the Web
Perhaps that will be the proverbial push that gets them to trade Hendrickson and retool a bit.
—Robert Marvi, MSNBC Newsweek, 23 Sep. 2025
The coastal region’s most esteemed hotels and resorts are rolling out the proverbial red carpet for a season of culinary highlights.
—Brock Keeling, Oc Register, 17 Sep. 2025
English football has already made history in the Champions League season, before the proverbial ball has been kicked in anger.
—Dan Cancian, Forbes.com, 16 Sep. 2025
Those starting errors — the proverbial flaps of a butterfly’s wings, a metaphor that emerged from Lorenz’s work — grow over time, as will the difference between prediction and reality.
—Joseph Howlett, Quanta Magazine, 15 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for proverbial
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Robert Marvi, MSNBC Newsweek, 23 Sep. 2025
The coastal region’s most esteemed hotels and resorts are rolling out the proverbial red carpet for a season of culinary highlights.
—Brock Keeling, Oc Register, 17 Sep. 2025
English football has already made history in the Champions League season, before the proverbial ball has been kicked in anger.
—Dan Cancian, Forbes.com, 16 Sep. 2025
Those starting errors — the proverbial flaps of a butterfly’s wings, a metaphor that emerged from Lorenz’s work — grow over time, as will the difference between prediction and reality.
—Joseph Howlett, Quanta Magazine, 15 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for proverbial
Cite this Entry
“Proverbial.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/proverbial. Accessed 30 Sep. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
proverbial
adjective
pro·ver·bi·al
prə-ˈvər-bē-əl
1
: of, relating to, or resembling a proverb
proverbial wisdom
2
: commonly spoken of
the proverbial beginner's luck
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