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Definition of parable - 7 dictionary results

par⋅a⋅ble

  [par-uh-buhl]
Use parable in a Sentence
–noun
1. a short allegorical story designed to illustrate or teach some truth, religious principle, or moral lesson.
2. a statement or comment that conveys a meaning indirectly by the use of comparison, analogy, or the like.
Origin:
1275–1325; ME parabil < LL parabola comparison, parable, word < Gk parabol comparison, equiv. to para- para- 1 + bol a throwing

Related forms:
pa⋅rab⋅o⋅list  [puh-rab-uh-list] , noun

Synonyms:
1. allegory, homily, apologue.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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par·a·ble   (pār'ə-bəl)   
n.  A simple story illustrating a moral or religious lesson.

[Middle English, from Old French, from Late Latin parabola, from Greek parabolē, from paraballein, to compare : para-, beside; see para-1 + ballein, to throw; see gwelə- in Indo-European roots.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Parable

Par"a*ble\, a. [L. parabilis, fr. parare to provide.] Procurable. [Obs.] --Sir T. Browne.

Parable

Par"a*ble\, n. [F. parabole, L. parabola, fr. Gr. ? a placing beside or together, a comparing, comparison, a parable, fr. ? to throw beside, compare; ? beside + ? to throw; cf. Skr. gal to drop. Cf. Emblem, Gland, Palaver, Parabola, Parley, Parabole, Symbol.] A comparison; a similitude; specifically, a short fictitious narrative of something which might really occur in life or nature, by means of which a moral is drawn; as, the parables of Christ. --Chaucer.

Declare unto us the parable of the tares. --Matt. xiii. 36.

Syn: See Allegory, and Note under Apologue.

Parable

Par"a*ble\, v. t. To represent by parable. [R.]

Which by the ancient sages was thus parabled. --Milton.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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Language Translation for : parable
Spanish: parábola,
German: die Parabel,
Japanese: たとえ話
More Translations »

parable 
c.1325, "saying or story in which something is expressed in terms of something else," from O.Fr. parable, from L. parabola "comparison," from Gk. parabole "a comparison, parable," lit. "a throwing beside," from para- "alongside" + bole "a throwing, casting," related to ballein "to throw." Replaced O.E. bispell. In V.L. parabola took on the meaning "word," hence It. parlare, Fr. parler "to speak."
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Parable

(Gr. parabole), a placing beside; a comparison; equivalent to the Heb. mashal, a similitude. In the Old Testament this is used to denote (1) a proverb (1 Sam. 10:12; 24:13; 2 Chr. 7:20), (2) a prophetic utterance (Num. 23:7; Ezek. 20:49), (3) an enigmatic saying (Ps. 78:2; Prov. 1:6). In the New Testament, (1) a proverb (Mark 7:17; Luke 4:23), (2) a typical emblem (Heb. 9:9; 11:19), (3) a similitude or allegory (Matt. 15:15; 24:32; Mark 3:23; Luke 5:36; 14:7); (4) ordinarily, in a more restricted sense, a comparison of earthly with heavenly things, "an earthly story with a heavenly meaning," as in the parables of our Lord. Instruction by parables has been in use from the earliest times. A large portion of our Lord's public teaching consisted of parables. He himself explains his reasons for this in his answer to the inquiry of the disciples, "Why speakest thou to them in parables?" (Matt. 13:13-15; Mark 4:11, 12; Luke 8:9, 10). He followed in so doing the rule of the divine procedures, as recorded in Matt. 13:13. The parables uttered by our Lord are all recorded in the synoptical (i.e., the first three) Gospels. The fourth Gospel contains no parable properly so called, although the illustration of the good shepherd (John 10:1-16) has all the essential features of a parable. (See List of Parables in Appendix.)

Easton's 1897 Bible Dictionary
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