parable
/ˈpæɹ.ə.bəl/
Word Rarity
Rare
Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.10 in modern English
11
Scrabble Score
7
Letters
3
Syllables
6
Unique Chars
Meaning
noun
A short narrative illustrating a lesson (usually religious/moral) by comparison or analogy.
Example Sentences
- "In the New Testament the parables told by Jesus Christ convey His message, as in "The parable of the prodigal son"."
- "Catholic homilies normally draw on at least one Biblical lecture, often parables."
- "Which by the ancient sages was thus parabled."
- "The most parable and easy, and about which many are employed, is to teach a school, turn lecturer or curate […]."
- "well-wishers unto parable Physick"
Etymology
Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *per- Proto-Indo-European *preh₂- Proto-Hellenic *pərai Ancient Greek πᾰρᾰ́ (părắ) Ancient Greek παρα- (para-) Proto-Indo-European *gʷelH-der. Proto-Hellenic *gʷəlnō Ancient Greek βάλλω (bállō) Ancient Greek παραβάλλω (parabállō) Proto-Indo-European *-h₂ Proto-Indo-European *-éh₂ Proto-Hellenic *-ā́ Ancient Greek -ᾱ (-ā) Ancient Greek -η (-ē) Ancient Greek παραβολή (parabolḗ)bor. Late Latin parabolabor. Old French parabolebor. Middle English parable English parable From Middle English parable, from Old French parable, parabole, from Late Latin parabola, from Ancient Greek παραβολή (parabolḗ, “comparison”). Doublet of parabola, parole, and palaver.
Origin
Word Breakdown
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /ˈpæɹ.ə.bəl/
- British English: /ˈpaɹəbəl/
Usage
Inflected Forms
parables (plural)
parables (present, singular)
parabling (participle, present)
parabled (participle, past)
parabled (past)
more parable (comparative)
most parable (superlative)