plural fairy tales
1
: a simple children's story about magical creatures
the fairy tale about the sleeping princess
—sometimes used figurativelyTheir marriage is a real-life fairy tale. [=they have a very happy marriage]
a fairy-tale romance
called also fairy story
2
: a false story that is meant to trick people
Everything he told us about his happy marriage was just a fairy tale.
Cite this Entry
“Fairy tale.” Merriam-Webster.com Simple Definition, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/simple/fairy%20tale. Accessed 23 Jun. 2026.
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