parable
- parable
\ \ [14] The etymological idea underlying parable is of ‘drawing analogies’. It comes via Old French parabole and Latin parabola from Greek parabolé, a derivative of parabállein.
\ \ This was a compound verb formed from pará ‘beside’ and bállein ‘throw’ (source of English ballistic [18]). It meant ‘put beside’, hence ‘compare’. Its derived noun parabolé was used for a ‘comparison’ or ‘analogy’, and hence in the Christian tradition for an ‘allegorical or moral narrative’. The geometrical sense of the term, acquired by English directly from Latin as parabola [16], comes from the notion of ‘comparability’ or ‘parallelism’ between the section of a cone that forms the parabola and an element in the cone’s surface. Etymologically the same word is parole [17], which reached English via Vulgar Latin *paraula and Old French parole ‘word’. Its use for ‘conditional release’ is based on the notion of the prisoner giving his ‘word of honour’ to be of good behaviour.
\ \ Cf.⇒ BALLISTIC, PALAVER, PARABOLA, PARLIAMENT, PAROLE
Word origins - 2ed.
J. Ayto.
2005.
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PARABLE — PARABLE, from the Greek παραβολὴ (lit. juxtaposition ), the usual Septuagint rendering of Hebrew mashal ( comparison, saying, and derived meanings ). No distinction is made in biblical usage between parable, allegory, and fable; all are forms of… … Encyclopedia of Judaism
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; para beside + ? to throw; cf. Skr. gal to drop. Cf. {Emblem}, {Gland}, {Palaver}, {Parabola},… … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
parable — (n.) early 14c., 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 (see PARA (Cf. para … Etymology dictionary
parable — [par′ə bəl] n. [ME < MFr parabole < LL(Ec) parabola, an allegorical relation, parable < L, comparison < Gr parabolē, an analogy (< paraballein, to throw beside: see PARA 1 & BALL2), in N.T. & LXX, parable: transl. of Heb mashal,… … English World dictionary
Parable — Par a*ble, v. t. To represent by parable. [R.] [1913 Webster] Which by the ancient sages was thus parabled. Milton. [1913 Webster] … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
Parable — Par a*ble, a. [L. parabilis, fr. parare to provide.] Procurable. [Obs.] Sir T. Browne. [1913 Webster] … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
parable — *allegory, myth, fable … New Dictionary of Synonyms
parable — [n] moral story allegory, fable, legend, lesson, tale, teaching; concept 282 … New thesaurus
parable — ► NOUN ▪ a simple story used to illustrate a moral or spiritual lesson. ORIGIN Latin parabola comparison, discourse, allegory , from Greek parabol (see PARABOLA(Cf. ↑parabola)) … English terms dictionary
Parable — For a comparison of parable with other kinds of stories, see Myth, legend, fairy tale, and fable. The Parable of the Good Samaritan by Jan Wijnants (1670) shows the Good Samaritan tending the injured man. A parable is … Wikipedia
parable — [[t]pæ̱rəb(ə)l[/t]] parables N COUNT: oft N of n A parable is a short story, which is told in order to make a moral or religious point, like those in the Bible. ... the parable of the Good Samaritan... The story is a pleasing parable of the… … English dictionary
