A myth is a well-known story which was made up in the past to explain natural events or to justify religious beliefs or social customs.
There is a famous Greek myth in which Icarus flew too near to the Sun.
...the world of magic and of myth.
2. variable noun
If you describe a belief or explanation as a myth, you mean that many people believe it but it is actually untrue.
Contrary to the popular myth, women are not reckless spendthrifts.
Synonyms: illusion, story, fancy, fantasy More Synonyms of myth
More Synonyms of myth
myth in British English
(mɪθ)
noun
1.
a.
a story about superhuman beings of an earlier age taken by preliterate society to be a true account, usually of how natural phenomena, social customs, etc, came into existence
b. another word for mythology (sense 1), mythology (sense 3)
2.
a person or thing whose existence is fictional or unproven
3.
(in modern literature) a theme or character type embodying an idea
Hemingway's myth of the male hero
4. philosophy
(esp in the writings of Plato) an allegory or parable
Word origin
C19: via Late Latin from Greek muthos fable, word
myth. in British English
abbreviation for
1.
mythological
2.
mythology
myth in American English
(mɪθ)
noun
1.
a traditional or legendary story, usually concerning some being or hero or event, with or without a determinable basis of fact or a natural explanation, esp. one that is concerned with deities or demigods and explains some practice, rite, or phenomenon of nature
2.
stories or matter of this kind
realm of myth
3.
any invented story, idea, or concept
His account of the event is pure myth
4.
an imaginary or fictitious thing or person
5.
an unproved or false collective belief that is used to justify a social institution
Word origin
[1820–30; ‹ LL mȳthos ‹ Gk mŷthos story, word]
Examples of 'myth' in a sentence
myth
One of the myths of the past six years is that Britain has imposed far more austerity than America.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
To say that a story is a myth is not to say that it is necessarily fictional.
Greeley, Andrew M. Sociology and Religion: A Collection of Readings (1995)
Places that seemed full of myth and magic.
Times, Sunday Times (2013)
Why is it that there is a myth that old people are sickly?
McKenzie, James F. & Pinger, Robert R. An Introduction to Community Health (1995)
One of the great myths about modern football is that it is purely a results business.
Times, Sunday Times (2013)
It is the kind of myth an ancient people might make to explain celestial phenomena.
John Garth TOLKIEN AND THE GREAT WAR: The Threshold of Middle-earth (2003)
The idea that criminals generally avoid leaving their fingerprints behind by wiping them away or wearing gloves is a modern myth.
Colin Beavan FINGERPRINTS: Murder and the Race to Uncover the Science of Identity (2002)
Religion is not myth or magic.
Times, Sunday Times (2013)
That message has seeped through to such an extent that popular myth encourages the notion that sporting greatness is open to anyone.
Times, Sunday Times (2013)
One of the myths of our age is that we all need more choice, more freedom.
Times, Sunday Times (2013)
It is a religious book, full of myths and parables.
Times, Sunday Times (2009)
Equally important is hearing the stories, sagas and myths about past and present managers.
Times, Sunday Times (2015)
But he also sought refuge in history, allegory and myth.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
Today we cannot hope to understand completely just what the myths meant to the Northern peoples.
Barrett, Clive The Gods of Asgard (1989)
The rock's great antiquity means fanciful myths have grown around it.
Times, Sunday Times (2007)
History of myth and magic?
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
One of the most curious aspects to his story is the myths that accrued, myths that he fought hard to keep alive.
Times, Sunday Times (2011)
The Russian Revolution has proven itself to be fertile ground for allegory and myth.
The Times Literary Supplement (2013)
The beauty myth tells a story: The quality called "beauty" objectively and universally exists.
Bachmann, Susan (editor) & Barth, Melinda Between Worlds: A Reader, Rhetoric and Handbook (1995)
In other languages
myth
British English: myth /mɪθ/ NOUN
A myth is an ancient story about gods and magic.
...the famous Greek myth of Medusa, the snake-haired monster.
American English: myth
Arabic: أُسْطُورَةٌ
Brazilian Portuguese: mito
Chinese: 神话
Croatian: mit
Czech: mýtus
Danish: myte
Dutch: mythe
European Spanish: mito
Finnish: myytti
French: mythe
German: Mythos
Greek: μύθος
Italian: mito
Japanese: 神話
Korean: 신화
Norwegian: myte
Polish: mit
European Portuguese: mito
Romanian: mit
Russian: миф
Latin American Spanish: mito
Swedish: myt
Thai: นิทานปรัมปรา
Turkish: efsane
Ukrainian: міф
Vietnamese: thần thoại
Chinese translation of 'myth'
myth
(mɪθ)
n(c)
(= legend, story) 神话(話) (shénhuà) (个(個), gè)
(= fallacy) 谬(謬)论(論) (miùlùn) (个(個), gè)
1 (noun)
Definition
a story about superhuman beings of an earlier age, usually of how natural phenomena or social customs came into existence
a famous Greek myth
Synonyms
legend
the legends of ancient Greece
story
a popular love story with a happy ending
tradition
fiction
She is a writer of historical fiction.
saga
a Nordic saga of giants and trolls
fable
Each tale has the timeless quality of fable.
parable
the parable of the Good Samaritan
allegory
The book is a kind of allegory of the country's history.
fairy story
folk tale
urban myth
urban legend
2 (noun)
Definition
a person or thing whose existence is fictional or unproven
Several popular myths endure about art thieves.
Synonyms
illusion
No one really has any illusions about winning the war.
story
fancy
His book is a bold surrealist mixture of fact and fancy.
fantasy
a world of imagination and fantasy
imagination
invention
The story was undoubtedly pure invention.
delusion
I was under the delusion that he intended to marry me.
superstition
The phantom of the merry-go-round is just a local superstition.
fabrication
She described the interview with her as a `complete fabrication'.
falsehood
He accused them of knowingly spreading falsehoods about him.
figment
It wasn't just a figment of my imagination.
tall story
cock and bull story (informal)
Additional synonyms
in the sense of allegory
Definition
a story, poem, or picture with an underlying meaning as well as the literal one
The book is a kind of allegory of the country's history.
Synonyms
symbol,
story,
tale,
myth,
symbolism,
emblem,
fable,
parable,
apologue
in the sense of delusion
Definition
a mistaken idea or belief
I was under the delusion that he intended to marry me.
Synonyms
misconception,
mistaken idea,
misapprehension,
fancy,
illusion,
deception,
hallucination,
fallacy,
self-deception,
false impression,
phantasm,
misbelief
in the sense of fable
Definition
a story about mythical characters or events
Each tale has the timeless quality of fable.
Synonyms
legend,
myth,
parable,
allegory,
story,
tale,
apologue
Synonyms of 'myth'
myth
Explore 'myth' in the dictionary
Additional synonyms
in the sense of fabrication
She described the interview with her as a `complete fabrication'.
Synonyms
forgery,
lie,
fiction,
myth,
fake,
invention,
fable,
concoction,
falsehood,
figment,
untruth,
porky (British, slang),
fairy story (informal),
pork pie (British, slang),
cock-and-bull story (informal),
claptrap (informal)
in the sense of falsehood
Definition
a lie
He accused them of knowingly spreading falsehoods about him.
Synonyms
lie,
story (informal),
fiction,
fabrication,
fib,
untruth,
porky (British, slang),
pork pie (British, slang),
misstatement
in the sense of fancy
His book is a bold surrealist mixture of fact and fancy.
Synonyms
delusion,
dream,
vision,
fantasy,
nightmare,
daydream,
chimera,
phantasm
in the sense of fantasy
Definition
imagination unrestricted by reality
a world of imagination and fantasy
Synonyms
imagination,
fancy (old-fashioned, literary),
invention,
creativity,
originality
in the sense of fiction
Definition
literary works invented by the imagination, such as novels
She is a writer of historical fiction.
Synonyms
tale,
story,
novel,
legend,
myth,
romance,
fable,
storytelling,
narration,
creative writing,
work of imagination
in the sense of figment
It wasn't just a figment of my imagination.
Synonyms
invention,
production,
fancy,
creation,
fiction,
fable,
improvisation,
fabrication,
falsehood
in the sense of imagination
Synonyms
unreality,
idea,
image,
notion,
illusion,
invention,
conception,
supposition,
chimera,
ideality
in the sense of invention
Definition
a lie
The story was undoubtedly pure invention.
Synonyms
fiction,
story (informal),
fantasy,
lie,
yarn (informal),
fabrication,
concoction,
falsehood,
fib (informal),
untruth,
urban myth,
prevarication,
tall story (informal),
urban legend,
figment or product of (someone's) imagination
in the sense of parable
Definition
a short story that uses familiar situations to illustrate a religious or moral point
the parable of the Good Samaritan
Synonyms
lesson,
story,
fable,
allegory,
moral tale,
exemplum
in the sense of saga
Definition
a medieval Scandinavian legend telling the adventures of a hero or a family
a Nordic saga of giants and trolls
Synonyms
epic,
story,
tale,
legend,
adventure,
romance,
narrative,
chronicle,
yarn (informal),
fairy tale,
folk tale,
roman-fleuve
Additional synonyms
in the sense of story
Definition
a piece of fiction, shorter and usually less detailed than a novel
a popular love story with a happy ending
Synonyms
tale,
romance,
narrative,
record,
history,
version,
novel,
legend,
chronicle,
yarn (informal),
recital,
narration,
urban myth,
urban legend,
fictional account
in the sense of superstition
Definition
a belief or practice based on this
The phantom of the merry-go-round is just a local superstition.