See old wives' tale in All languages combined, or Wiktionary
Download JSON data for old wives' tale meaning in English (5.4kB)
{
"etymology_templates": [
{
"args": {
"1": "ang",
"2": "wīf"
},
"expansion": "Old English wīf",
"name": "cog"
},
{
"args": {
"1": "ang",
"2": "ealdra cwēna spell"
},
"expansion": "Old English ealdra cwēna spell",
"name": "cog"
},
{
"args": {
"1": "la",
"2": "anīlis fābula"
},
"expansion": "Latin anīlis fābula",
"name": "ncog"
}
],
"etymology_text": "In this context, the word “wives” means “women” and not “married women,” retaining the original sense of Old English wīf, which meant “woman” as well as “wife”. The phrase could be a reformation of Old English ealdra cwēna spell or a calque of Latin anīlis fābula, both literally “old women’s story.”",
"forms": [
{
"form": "old wives' tales",
"tags": [
"plural"
]
}
],
"head_templates": [
{
"args": {
"head": "old wives' tale"
},
"expansion": "old wives' tale (plural old wives' tales)",
"name": "en-noun"
}
],
"lang": "English",
"lang_code": "en",
"pos": "noun",
"senses": [
{
"categories": [
{
"_dis": "66 34",
"kind": "other",
"name": "English entries with incorrect language header",
"parents": [
"Entries with incorrect language header",
"Entry maintenance"
],
"source": "w+disamb"
}
],
"glosses": [
"A supposed truth that has been passed down by word of mouth"
],
"id": "en-old_wives'_tale-en-noun-LUHHrzYf",
"links": [
[
"truth",
"truth"
],
[
"word of mouth",
"word of mouth"
]
],
"translations": [
{
"_dis1": "98 2",
"code": "cmn",
"lang": "Chinese Mandarin",
"sense": "supposed truth that has been passed down by word of mouth",
"word": "迷信的說法"
},
{
"_dis1": "98 2",
"code": "cmn",
"lang": "Chinese Mandarin",
"roman": "míxìn de shuōfǎ",
"sense": "supposed truth that has been passed down by word of mouth",
"word": "迷信的说法"
},
{
"_dis1": "98 2",
"code": "fi",
"lang": "Finnish",
"sense": "supposed truth that has been passed down by word of mouth",
"word": "huhupuhe"
},
{
"_dis1": "98 2",
"code": "fi",
"lang": "Finnish",
"sense": "supposed truth that has been passed down by word of mouth",
"word": "akkojen puhe"
},
{
"_dis1": "98 2",
"code": "la",
"lang": "Latin",
"sense": "supposed truth that has been passed down by word of mouth",
"tags": [
"feminine"
],
"word": "anīlis fābula"
},
{
"_dis1": "98 2",
"code": "la",
"lang": "Latin",
"sense": "supposed truth that has been passed down by word of mouth",
"tags": [
"feminine"
],
"word": "ava"
},
{
"_dis1": "98 2",
"code": "mk",
"lang": "Macedonian",
"roman": "babina devetina",
"sense": "supposed truth that has been passed down by word of mouth",
"word": "бабина деветина"
}
]
},
{
"categories": [
{
"_dis": "16 84",
"kind": "topical",
"langcode": "en",
"name": "Folklore",
"orig": "en:Folklore",
"parents": [
"Culture",
"Society",
"All topics",
"Fundamental"
],
"source": "w+disamb"
}
],
"glosses": [
"A rumour, myth or superstition; something which is almost certainly untrue, despite acceptance by many."
],
"id": "en-old_wives'_tale-en-noun-N7ejvS5U",
"links": [
[
"rumour",
"rumour"
],
[
"myth",
"myth"
],
[
"superstition",
"superstition"
],
[
"almost",
"almost"
],
[
"certainly",
"certainly"
],
[
"untrue",
"untrue"
]
],
"related": [
{
"_dis1": "31 69",
"word": "old wife"
},
{
"_dis1": "31 69",
"word": "urban legend"
},
{
"_dis1": "31 69",
"word": "urban myth"
}
],
"translations": [
{
"_dis1": "3 97",
"code": "eu",
"lang": "Basque",
"sense": "rumour, myth or superstition",
"word": "atsokeria"
},
{
"_dis1": "3 97",
"code": "eu",
"lang": "Basque",
"sense": "rumour, myth or superstition",
"word": "atso-ipuin"
},
{
"_dis1": "3 97",
"code": "cmn",
"lang": "Chinese Mandarin",
"sense": "rumour, myth or superstition",
"word": "迷信的說法"
},
{
"_dis1": "3 97",
"code": "cmn",
"lang": "Chinese Mandarin",
"roman": "míxìn de shuōfǎ",
"sense": "rumour, myth or superstition",
"word": "迷信的说法"
},
{
"_dis1": "3 97",
"code": "da",
"lang": "Danish",
"sense": "rumour, myth or superstition",
"tags": [
"common-gender"
],
"word": "ammestuehistorie"
},
{
"_dis1": "3 97",
"code": "nl",
"lang": "Dutch",
"sense": "rumour, myth or superstition",
"tags": [
"neuter"
],
"word": "bakerpraatje"
},
{
"_dis1": "3 97",
"code": "fi",
"lang": "Finnish",
"sense": "rumour, myth or superstition",
"word": "harhaluulo"
},
{
"_dis1": "3 97",
"code": "fi",
"lang": "Finnish",
"sense": "rumour, myth or superstition",
"word": "akkojen puhe"
},
{
"_dis1": "3 97",
"code": "fr",
"lang": "French",
"sense": "rumour, myth or superstition",
"tags": [
"masculine"
],
"word": "mythe"
},
{
"_dis1": "3 97",
"code": "de",
"lang": "German",
"sense": "rumour, myth or superstition",
"tags": [
"neuter"
],
"word": "Ammenmärchen"
},
{
"_dis1": "3 97",
"code": "he",
"lang": "Hebrew",
"roman": "sippuréy savtá",
"sense": "rumour, myth or superstition",
"tags": [
"masculine",
"plural"
],
"word": "סִפּוּרֵי סָבְתָא"
},
{
"_dis1": "3 97",
"code": "no",
"lang": "Norwegian",
"sense": "rumour, myth or superstition",
"word": "kjerringsnakk"
},
{
"_dis1": "3 97",
"code": "ang",
"lang": "Old English",
"sense": "rumour, myth or superstition",
"tags": [
"neuter"
],
"word": "ealdra cwēna spell"
},
{
"_dis1": "3 97",
"code": "ru",
"lang": "Russian",
"roman": "babʹi skazki",
"sense": "rumour, myth or superstition",
"word": "бабьи сказки"
},
{
"_dis1": "3 97",
"code": "sv",
"lang": "Swedish",
"sense": "rumour, myth or superstition",
"tags": [
"common-gender"
],
"word": "amsaga"
},
{
"_dis1": "3 97",
"code": "yi",
"lang": "Yiddish",
"roman": "bobe-mayse",
"sense": "rumour, myth or superstition",
"tags": [
"feminine"
],
"word": "באָבע־מעשׂה"
}
]
}
],
"wikipedia": [
"old wives' tale"
],
"word": "old wives' tale"
}
{
"categories": [
"English countable nouns",
"English entries with incorrect language header",
"English lemmas",
"English multiword terms",
"English nouns",
"en:Folklore"
],
"etymology_templates": [
{
"args": {
"1": "ang",
"2": "wīf"
},
"expansion": "Old English wīf",
"name": "cog"
},
{
"args": {
"1": "ang",
"2": "ealdra cwēna spell"
},
"expansion": "Old English ealdra cwēna spell",
"name": "cog"
},
{
"args": {
"1": "la",
"2": "anīlis fābula"
},
"expansion": "Latin anīlis fābula",
"name": "ncog"
}
],
"etymology_text": "In this context, the word “wives” means “women” and not “married women,” retaining the original sense of Old English wīf, which meant “woman” as well as “wife”. The phrase could be a reformation of Old English ealdra cwēna spell or a calque of Latin anīlis fābula, both literally “old women’s story.”",
"forms": [
{
"form": "old wives' tales",
"tags": [
"plural"
]
}
],
"head_templates": [
{
"args": {
"head": "old wives' tale"
},
"expansion": "old wives' tale (plural old wives' tales)",
"name": "en-noun"
}
],
"lang": "English",
"lang_code": "en",
"pos": "noun",
"related": [
{
"word": "old wife"
},
{
"word": "urban legend"
},
{
"word": "urban myth"
}
],
"senses": [
{
"glosses": [
"A supposed truth that has been passed down by word of mouth"
],
"links": [
[
"truth",
"truth"
],
[
"word of mouth",
"word of mouth"
]
]
},
{
"glosses": [
"A rumour, myth or superstition; something which is almost certainly untrue, despite acceptance by many."
],
"links": [
[
"rumour",
"rumour"
],
[
"myth",
"myth"
],
[
"superstition",
"superstition"
],
[
"almost",
"almost"
],
[
"certainly",
"certainly"
],
[
"untrue",
"untrue"
]
]
}
],
"translations": [
{
"code": "cmn",
"lang": "Chinese Mandarin",
"sense": "supposed truth that has been passed down by word of mouth",
"word": "迷信的說法"
},
{
"code": "cmn",
"lang": "Chinese Mandarin",
"roman": "míxìn de shuōfǎ",
"sense": "supposed truth that has been passed down by word of mouth",
"word": "迷信的说法"
},
{
"code": "fi",
"lang": "Finnish",
"sense": "supposed truth that has been passed down by word of mouth",
"word": "huhupuhe"
},
{
"code": "fi",
"lang": "Finnish",
"sense": "supposed truth that has been passed down by word of mouth",
"word": "akkojen puhe"
},
{
"code": "la",
"lang": "Latin",
"sense": "supposed truth that has been passed down by word of mouth",
"tags": [
"feminine"
],
"word": "anīlis fābula"
},
{
"code": "la",
"lang": "Latin",
"sense": "supposed truth that has been passed down by word of mouth",
"tags": [
"feminine"
],
"word": "ava"
},
{
"code": "mk",
"lang": "Macedonian",
"roman": "babina devetina",
"sense": "supposed truth that has been passed down by word of mouth",
"word": "бабина деветина"
},
{
"code": "eu",
"lang": "Basque",
"sense": "rumour, myth or superstition",
"word": "atsokeria"
},
{
"code": "eu",
"lang": "Basque",
"sense": "rumour, myth or superstition",
"word": "atso-ipuin"
},
{
"code": "cmn",
"lang": "Chinese Mandarin",
"sense": "rumour, myth or superstition",
"word": "迷信的說法"
},
{
"code": "cmn",
"lang": "Chinese Mandarin",
"roman": "míxìn de shuōfǎ",
"sense": "rumour, myth or superstition",
"word": "迷信的说法"
},
{
"code": "da",
"lang": "Danish",
"sense": "rumour, myth or superstition",
"tags": [
"common-gender"
],
"word": "ammestuehistorie"
},
{
"code": "nl",
"lang": "Dutch",
"sense": "rumour, myth or superstition",
"tags": [
"neuter"
],
"word": "bakerpraatje"
},
{
"code": "fi",
"lang": "Finnish",
"sense": "rumour, myth or superstition",
"word": "harhaluulo"
},
{
"code": "fi",
"lang": "Finnish",
"sense": "rumour, myth or superstition",
"word": "akkojen puhe"
},
{
"code": "fr",
"lang": "French",
"sense": "rumour, myth or superstition",
"tags": [
"masculine"
],
"word": "mythe"
},
{
"code": "de",
"lang": "German",
"sense": "rumour, myth or superstition",
"tags": [
"neuter"
],
"word": "Ammenmärchen"
},
{
"code": "he",
"lang": "Hebrew",
"roman": "sippuréy savtá",
"sense": "rumour, myth or superstition",
"tags": [
"masculine",
"plural"
],
"word": "סִפּוּרֵי סָבְתָא"
},
{
"code": "no",
"lang": "Norwegian",
"sense": "rumour, myth or superstition",
"word": "kjerringsnakk"
},
{
"code": "ang",
"lang": "Old English",
"sense": "rumour, myth or superstition",
"tags": [
"neuter"
],
"word": "ealdra cwēna spell"
},
{
"code": "ru",
"lang": "Russian",
"roman": "babʹi skazki",
"sense": "rumour, myth or superstition",
"word": "бабьи сказки"
},
{
"code": "sv",
"lang": "Swedish",
"sense": "rumour, myth or superstition",
"tags": [
"common-gender"
],
"word": "amsaga"
},
{
"code": "yi",
"lang": "Yiddish",
"roman": "bobe-mayse",
"sense": "rumour, myth or superstition",
"tags": [
"feminine"
],
"word": "באָבע־מעשׂה"
}
],
"wikipedia": [
"old wives' tale"
],
"word": "old wives' tale"
}
This page is a part of the kaikki.org machine-readable English dictionary. This dictionary is based on structured data extracted on 2024-04-26 from the enwiktionary dump dated 2024-04-21 using wiktextract (93a6c53 and 21a9316). The data shown on this site has been post-processed and various details (e.g., extra categories) removed, some information disambiguated, and additional data merged from other sources. See the raw data download page for the unprocessed wiktextract data.
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