myth /mɪθ/ BrE AmE noun [uncountable and countable]
[ Date: 1800-1900 ; Language: Greek ; Origin: mythos 'story, speech, myth' ]
1 . an idea or story that many people believe, but which is not true SYN fallacy
myth of
the myth of male superiority
myth that
It was important to dispel the myth that Aids was a gay disease.
2 . an ancient story, especially one invented in order to explain natural or historical events ⇨ mythology :
a book of Greek myths
myth of
the myth of Orpheus
the giants of myth and fairytale
⇨ ↑ urban myth
• • •
COLLOCATIONS
■ verbs
▪ create a myth
Stalin created a lot of myths about himself.
▪ believe a myth
People still believe the myth that money will bring them happiness.
▪ explode/dispel/debunk a myth (=show that it is not true)
Our goal is to debunk the myth that science is boring.
▪ perpetuate a myth (=make it continue)
Let’s stop perpetuating this myth.
▪ a myth grows up (=starts)
A number of myths have grown up about their relationship.
▪ a myth persists (=it continues)
The myth still persists that we need to build more roads.
▪ myth has it that ... (=there is a myth that)
Myth had it that Mrs Thatcher only needed four hours sleep a night.
■ adjectives
▪ a common/popular myth (=that many people believe)
Contrary to popular myth, most road accidents are not the result of speeding.
▪ a modern myth
Is it a modern myth that we are living in a classless society?
▪ a powerful myth (=that has a lot of influence on people)
There is a powerful myth that crime has increased – in fact there was much more crime 100 years ago.
▪ an enduring myth (=that has continued for a long time)
The idea that Kennedy was shot by the CIA is one of the enduring myths of our time.
■ phrases
▪ be a complete/total myth
It’s a complete myth that eating carrots helps you to see in the dark.
▪ be a bit of a myth (=be not really true)
The whole story is a bit of a myth.
▪ the myths surrounding something (=relating to something)
the myths surrounding rural life
• • •
THESAURUS
▪ story a description of how something happened that is intended to entertain people, and may be true or imaginary:
a ghost story
|
a love story
|
It’s a story about a man who loses his memory.
|
a book of short stories
▪ tale a story about strange imaginary events, or exciting events that happened in the past:
a fairy tale by Hans Christian Andersen
|
I loved hearing tales of his travels.
▪ myth noun [uncountable and countable] a very old imaginary story about gods and magical creatures:
an ancient myth
|
Greek and Roman myths
▪ legend noun [uncountable and countable] an old story about brave people or magical events that are probably not true:
popular legends of the creation of the world
|
According to legend, King Arthur was buried there.
▪ fable a traditional imaginary short story that teaches a moral lesson, especially a story about animals:
the fable of the tortoise and the hare
|
a Chinese fable
▪ epic a story told in a long book, film, or poem which is about great or exciting events, especially in history:
an epic about 13th-century Scottish hero William Wallace
▪ saga a story about a series of events that take place over a long period of time, especially events involving one family:
a family saga beginning in the 1880s
▪ yarn informal a long exciting story that is not completely true:
The movie’s a rattling good yarn and full of action.