parable

The word 'parable' originates from the Greek parabolē, meaning "a placing beside, comparison". This term is a compound of para- ("beside") and bolē ("a throw, casting"), creating the literal sense of "a throwing beside" or "a juxtaposition". In Classical Greek, it was used for any comparison or analogy, such as a rhetorical illustration. The term was adopted into Latin as parabola, where it took on the specific meaning of an allegorical story, a sense which was then inherited into English via Old French, becoming narrowly associated with the illustrative stories told by Jesus in the New Testament to convey spiritual truths.

Structure: para (beside) + ble (able to be thrown) - para: From Greek, meaning "beside, alongside, by". - ble: From Greek bolē, meaning "a throw, casting", via Latin -bulum (instrumental suffix) and -bilis (adjectival suffix).