Orde Coombs 
Did you know?
Myth and Urban Myth
For a word so often applied to events or stories from long, long ago, myth has a remarkably recent history in the English language. The earliest evidence for the word is from 1830, well after the time when the events themselves are thought to have occurred (though it should be noted that the related words mythology and mythic are hundreds of years older – still not as old as Achilles, but not young, either!). One application of myth, however – in the phrase urban myth – is quite new. Curiously, an urban myth does not usually have anything to do with the city: it is simply “a story about an unusual event or occurrence that many people believe is true but that is not true.” An example would be the tale that Elvis Presley is still alive after spending decades in a witness protection program. The phrase urban myth has been used to describe such hoaxes since at least 1971.
Examples of myth in a Sentence
Dr. Ellen S. Rome, Boston Herald, 21 Dec. 2025
What’s going on is that the man, the myth, the legend finally finds the spot where Sophi discovered the advantage, having no clue that it has already been found and removed from the premises.
—Dalton Ross, Entertainment Weekly, 18 Dec. 2025
Changing the conversation With so many myths out there, #iwasfifteen showed one way to change the usual conversation from blaming victims to exposing the ways that abusers exploit tweens and teens.
—Anne P. Deprince, The Conversation, 17 Dec. 2025
Of all the foundational myths driving the AI boom, the hope that AI might help humanity understand the universe is among the most enduring.
—Nikita Ostrovsky, Time, 16 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for myth
Cite this Entry
“Myth.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/myth. Accessed 25 Dec. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
myth
noun
Share