as in allegory
a story intended to teach a basic truth or moral about life
the parable in which the repentant sinner is compared to the returning prodigal son who is welcomed home
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Recent Examples of parable
Absurd parables like this one have been taken seriously by some of the loudest voices in Silicon Valley, many of whom are now warning that AI is an existential risk, more dangerous than nuclear weapons.
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Bryan Walsh, Vox, 5 Mar. 2025
Such a trend could be like the parable of the frog in a pot that heats so slowly the frog doesn’t notice it’s being cooked until too late, except that OPEC+ has very good thermometers.
—Michael Lynch, Forbes, 20 Feb. 2025
Elegant and spare, this is an environmental parable that doesn’t hammer away at its message.
—Stephanie Zacharek, TIME, 4 Dec. 2024
From paintings on ancient cave walls to parables, fables, and memes, animals have served as important storytelling tools.
—Randy Boyagoda, The Atlantic, 17 Oct. 2024
See All Example Sentences for parable
Bryan Walsh, Vox, 5 Mar. 2025
Such a trend could be like the parable of the frog in a pot that heats so slowly the frog doesn’t notice it’s being cooked until too late, except that OPEC+ has very good thermometers.
—Michael Lynch, Forbes, 20 Feb. 2025
Elegant and spare, this is an environmental parable that doesn’t hammer away at its message.
—Stephanie Zacharek, TIME, 4 Dec. 2024
From paintings on ancient cave walls to parables, fables, and memes, animals have served as important storytelling tools.
—Randy Boyagoda, The Atlantic, 17 Oct. 2024
See All Example Sentences for parable
Recent Examples of Synonyms for parable
Noun
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Warfare cannot reconcile the difference between documentary and allegory.—
Paul A. Thompson,
Pitchfork,
17 Apr. 2025
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And then Arthur Miller himself wrote the play as an allegory for McCarthyism.—
Nick Romano,
EW.com,
14 Apr. 2025
Noun
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Max Webster’s production, which won three Tony Awards for its mesmerizing design, brings audiences along on an adventure that combines the heartfelt wisdom of a classic fable with the splendor of modern stage poetry.—
Christopher Knight,
Los Angeles Times,
2 Apr. 2025
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With a beautifully labyrinthian plot, Alma and Mina’s story is a modern fable about good samaritans and well-intentioned, moneyed, privileged people.—
Manuel Betancourt,
Variety,
28 Mar. 2025
Noun
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But the most sobering cautionary tale comes from 1894, when a lighthouse keeper’s pet cat named Tibbles was introduced to Stephens Island in New Zealand.—
Scott Travers,
Forbes.com,
26 Apr. 2025
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Comments On Swift Horses is rife with drama — a tale of a love triangle between a young woman, Muriel (Daisy Edgar-Jones), her Korean War veteran husband Lee (Will Poulter), and his iconoclastic brother Julius (Jacob Elordi).—
Maureen Lee Lenker,
EW.com,
25 Apr. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Parable.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/parable. Accessed 3 May. 2025.
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