Meaning & use
a folktale
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Meaning
nouncountable
A traditional story that people tell and pass down orally, often anonymously.
Grammar: Used with 'a' or in the plural: 'a folktale' / 'folktales'.
Patterns
- tell a folktale
- a folktale about something
My grandmother told us a folktale about a clever rabbit.
This folktale has been told in many countries.
Scholars collected folktales from the region.
Word forms
| plural | folktales |
|---|
Common combinations
- tell a folktale
- Every evening, the elder would tell a folktale to the children.
- a traditional folktale
- The dance is based on a traditional folktale.
- a folktale about
- She wrote a play based on a folktale about a lost prince.
Synonyms and how they differ
Word family
Commonly confused: a folktale or fairy tale?
a folktale vs fairy tale
A fairy tale often includes magic and is usually written for children; a folktale is a traditional story passed down orally.
Practice
Which sentence uses 'a folktale' correctly?
Choose one answer.
'A folktale' is a story, so it can be 'read' or 'told'. Option B is wrong because you do not 'write a folktale to' someone; option C confuses it with food; option D uses it as a verb.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “a folktale”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.