: 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
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
Margaret Willis2
: a made-up story usually designed to mislead
an old-fashioned fairy tale depicting revolutionists as demigods—Jonathan Zimmerman
Jonathan ZimmermanSynonyms
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
Megan Boettcher, Better Homes & Gardens, 6 Dec. 2024
Adults explain little to her—the possibility of death lies beyond her field of vision—which gives the vivid misery of her treatment a fairy-tale quality.
—Molly Fischer, The New Yorker, 4 Dec. 2024
Jill Goldsmith, Deadline, 6 Dec. 2024
The movie is both a nifty modern twist on fairy tales and a fun odd couple comedy, anchored by two endearing performances.
—Sezín Devi Koehler, EW.com, 6 Dec. 2024
See all Example Sentences for fairy-tale 
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Adjective
In it, our editors suggested building a collection of fairy-tale houses from wood or cardboard to hang or display.
—Megan Boettcher, Better Homes & Gardens, 6 Dec. 2024
Adults explain little to her—the possibility of death lies beyond her field of vision—which gives the vivid misery of her treatment a fairy-tale quality.
—Molly Fischer, The New Yorker, 4 Dec. 2024
Noun
The dark fairy tale about a young factory worker woman’s search for morality in a cruel post-WWI Copenhagen.
—Jill Goldsmith, Deadline, 6 Dec. 2024
The movie is both a nifty modern twist on fairy tales and a fun odd couple comedy, anchored by two endearing performances.
—Sezín Devi Koehler, EW.com, 6 Dec. 2024
See all Example Sentences for fairy-tale
Dictionary Entries Near fairy-tale
Cite this Entry
“Fairy-tale.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/fairy-tale. Accessed 21 Dec. 2024.
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