as in allegory
a story intended to teach a basic truth or moral about life the film is an apologue of sorts, but the message is couched in a zany and action-filled plot

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Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for apologue
Noun
  • Ahead of the Europa League semi-final, Postecoglou spoke to his players about the Stonecutter’s Credo (also known as pounding the rock), an allegory for persistence even when progress may not be visible.
    Elias Burke, New York Times, 19 May 2025
  • The film, a blistering political allegory, is the latest in her long collaboration with Rasoulof (Goodbye, A Man of Integrity).
    Patrick Brzeski, HollywoodReporter, 9 May 2025
Noun
  • Sufi saints used stories, parables and allegories to teach spiritual truths.
    Sonya Rehman, Forbes.com, 26 Apr. 2025
  • While Jesus may have used parables and the Apostle Paul used letters, Francis used social media to spread the Gospel.
    John Blake, CNN Money, 22 Apr. 2025
Noun
  • But even more than that, Joe wants to be the hero of this warped fable.
    Alison Willmore, Vulture, 16 May 2025
  • The exhibition at DuSable Black History Museum features works made by Nazareno in response to Brazilian fables that that draw inspiration from the pantheon of Orixás–a system of entities worshipped in parts of Africa and Latin America.
    Lee Sharrock, Forbes.com, 22 Apr. 2025
Noun
  • The story splits its time between young Wash's misadventures and the older, adult Wash's tale of first love with a biracial woman, Tanna (Iola Evans), and a brush with danger in the form of bounty hunter, Willard (Billy Boyd).
    Maureen Lee Lenker, EW.com, 20 May 2025
  • It's been a tale of two companies with different policies, as Costco, which resisted public pressure to roll back its diversity plans, saw its 16th consecutive week of rising foot traffic that week.
    Nick Mordowanec, MSNBC Newsweek, 19 May 2025
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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“Apologue.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/apologue. Accessed 2 Jun. 2025.

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