OLD WIVES' TALES Synonyms: 38 Similar and Opposite Words

old wives' tales

noun

plural of old wives' tale

as in errors

a false idea or belief the belief that going outside with wet hair will cause you to catch cold is just an old wives' tale

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Recent Examples of Synonyms for old wives' tales

Noun

When people have little relief from stress in a chaotic environment, their brains have difficulty coping with the ongoing prediction errors, Friston, McEwen and neuroscientist Achim Peters argued in a 2017 article.

— Maia Szalavitz, Scientific American, 20 Oct. 2026
Passengers will also be able to fix any name errors on their booking for free.

— Will Barker, TheWeek, 19 Oct. 2026

Definition of errors

Noun

Also intertwined are ancient myths of warring city-states, the raw, moody poetry of John Keats, and the modern battle between a faithless husband and his wife, the poem’s raging speaker.

— Merve Emre, New Yorker, 21 Oct. 2026
But Brigid also appears throughout the early Irish myths as a member of the aes sidhe.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 21 Oct. 2026

Definition of myths

Noun

Pokémon cards, a pricey Ferrari shirt and a touristy museum of illusions.

— Jeanne Bonner, CNN Money, 16 Oct. 2026
When the team built a setup to directly quantify real-time heat flux alongside electrical output, the theoretical illusions collapsed.

— Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 8 Oct. 2026

Definition of illusions

Noun

Their superstitions gave the tideline its social structures and distinctive quality on the palate.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 15 Oct. 2026
American Horror Story is officially back for its 13th season — and so are many of the franchise’s most memorable characters, with a plethora of superstitions to come.

— Lexi Carson, HollywoodReporter, 25 Sep. 2026

Definition of superstitions

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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old wives' tale

old wives' tales

old-world

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“Old wives' tales.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/old%20wives%27%20tales. Accessed 27 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of old wives' tales

noun

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