English Dictionary

FAIRYTALE

Pronunciation (US): Play  (GB): Play

IPA (US): 

 Dictionary entry overview: What does fairytale mean? 

FAIRYTALE (noun)
  The noun FAIRYTALE has 2 senses:

1. a story about fairies; told to amuse childrenplay

2. an interesting but highly implausible story; often told as an excuseplay

  Familiarity information: FAIRYTALE used as a noun is rare.


 Dictionary entry details 


FAIRYTALE (noun)


Sense 1

Meaning:

A story about fairies; told to amuse children

Classified under:

Nouns denoting communicative processes and contents

Synonyms:

fairy story; fairy tale; fairytale

Hypernyms ("fairytale" is a kind of...):

narration; narrative; story; tale (a message that tells the particulars of an act or occurrence or course of events; presented in writing or drama or cinema or as a radio or television program)

Domain member category:

Bluebeard ((fairytale) a monstrous villain who marries seven women; he kills the first six for disobedience)


Sense 2

Meaning:

An interesting but highly implausible story; often told as an excuse

Classified under:

Nouns denoting communicative processes and contents

Synonyms:

cock-and-bull story; fairy story; fairy tale; fairytale; song and dance

Hypernyms ("fairytale" is a kind of...):

fib; story; tale; taradiddle; tarradiddle (a trivial lie)


 Learn English with... Proverbs 
"Brain is better than brawn." (English proverb)

"Let sleeping dogs lie." (Agatha Christie)

"Love is blind." (Arabic proverb)

"Theory dominates practice." (Corsican proverb)



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