fairy-tale

1 of 2

adjective

ˈfer-ē-ˌtāl 

: characteristic of or suitable to a fairy tale

especially : marked by seemingly unreal beauty, perfection, luck, or happiness

led a fairy-tale life

a store clerk's fairy-tale romance

fairy tale

2 of 2

noun

1

a

: a story (as for children) involving fantastic forces and beings (such as fairies, wizards, and goblins)

enjoyed the fairy tale "The Little Mermaid"

called also fairy story

b

: a story in which improbable events lead to a happy ending

those balletic fairy tales in which a new corps member steps in for an injured principal at the last minute and delivers a splendid performance

—Margaret Willis

2

: a made-up story usually designed to mislead

an old-fashioned fairy tale depicting revolutionists as demigods

—Jonathan Zimmerman

Synonyms

Noun

• fable
• fabrication
• falsehood
• falsity
• fib
• lie
• mendacity
• prevarication
• story
• tale
• taradiddle
• tarradiddle
• untruth
• whopper

Examples of fairy-tale in a Sentence

Noun

the fairy tale about the sleeping princess

Everything he told us about his happy marriage was just a fairy tale.

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

The book’s long-story-by-the-fire quality, combined with its fairy-tale deployment of castles, unfair punishments, and the thrumming, powerful natural world, evokes the most affecting children’s literature. —Amanda Parrish Morgan, The Atlantic, 23 Dec. 2024

And the only thing that’s deliberately stylized is the fairy-tale compositions. —Anne Thompson, IndieWire, 20 Dec. 2024

Noun

The vibrant costumes, the whimsical sets, the magical creatures create a fairy tale atmosphere, while the witty dialogue and pop culture references make the movie feel fresh and accessible to a modern audience. —Travis Bean, Forbes, 21 Dec. 2024

In her first major casting since breaking out with Cannes hit Emilia Pérez, Karla Sofía Gascón has signed on to star in Las Malas, a Spanish-language adaptation of the dark fairy tale novel Bad Girls by author Camila Sosa Villada. —Borys Kit, The Hollywood Reporter, 18 Dec. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

Adjective

1904, in the meaning defined above

Noun

1635, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Kids Definition

fairy tale

noun

1

: a simple children's story about imaginary beings

called also fairy story

2

: a made-up story usually meant to mislead