parabole

parable

noun pah-rah-BOL Rare

Also means

parabola (mathematics)

Usage Note

Parabole covers both the biblical/literary sense (a parable or moral story) and the geometric curve (parabola). In modern French it also means a satellite dish — une antenne parabolique or simply une parabole — making it a genuinely three-way polyseme worth learning.

Examples

"Il a expliqué sa thèse par une parabole."

Natural Translation

He explained his argument through a parable.

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