fairy tale
Americannoun
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a story, usually for children, about elves, hobgoblins, dragons, fairies, or other magical creatures.
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an incredible or misleading statement, account, or belief.
His story of being a millionaire is just a fairy tale.
adjective
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of, relating to, or suggesting a fairy tale.
a fairy-tale castle.
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idealized or romantic, often to an unrealistic extent.
Many people still want to believe in true love and fairy-tale endings.
adjective
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of or relating to a fairy tale
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resembling a fairy tale, esp in being extremely happy or fortunate
a true story with a fairy-tale ending
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highly improbable
he came out with a fairy-tale account of his achievements
noun
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a story about fairies or other mythical or magical beings, esp one of traditional origin told to children
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a highly improbable account
Etymology
Origin of fairy tale
First recorded in 1740–50
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The fairy tale of the princess and the pea tells of a young royal so sensitive she could detect a tiny pea hidden beneath many mattresses.
From Science Daily • Mar. 16, 2026
By the time I understood this in the late ’90s, we were living in a suburb of Columbus, Ohio, and the fact carried the weight of a fairy tale.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 10, 2026
This is a space, after all, for anyone who has ever been touched by a fairy tale, dreamed of the fantastical or wanted to believe in the power of wishing upon a star.
From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 26, 2026
A Goldilocks economy, as the fairy tale goes, is not too fast and not too slow.
From MarketWatch • Feb. 20, 2026
When Mrs. Sylvester stood in the middle of them with her scarf on her head and the big bag of swan food in her arms, she looked like something out of a fairy tale.
From "Raymie Nightingale" by Kate DiCamillo
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.