proverbial

From Latin prōverbiālis. Equivalent to proverb +‎ -ial

• (UK) IPA^(key): /pɹəˈvɜɹb.iː.əl/

• Audio (Southern England):

  (file)

proverbial (comparative more proverbial, superlative most proverbial)

1. Of, resembling, or expressed as a proverb, cliché, fable, or fairy tale.

   The busyness of a beaver is proverbial.

   The beaver in this instance upheld the reputation of the proverbial one: her output was prodigious.

   • 1947, Miracle on 34th Street (transcript):

     Doris: You're making me feel like the proverbial stepmother.

2. Not used in a literal sense, but as the subject of a well-known metaphor.

   the proverbial smoking gun

   proverbial spilled milk

   The visit was a warning shot across our proverbial bows

3. Widely known; famous; stereotypical.

   I grew up in a prefab house on Main Street in 1950s suburbia, the second and last child of a proverbial nuclear family.

proverbial (plural proverbials)

1. (euphemistic) Used to replace a word that might be considered unacceptable in a particular situation, when using a well-known phrase.

   I think we should be prepared in case the proverbial hits the fan.

   Are you taking the proverbial?

2. (euphemistic, in the plural) The groin or the testicles.

   You'll find they've got you by the proverbials.

Borrowed from Latin prōverbiālis.

• IPA^(key): (Central) [pɾu.βər.biˈal]
• IPA^(key): (Balearic) [pɾo.vər.biˈal]
• IPA^(key): (Valencia) [pɾo.veɾ.biˈal]

proverbial m or f (masculine and feminine plural proverbials)

1. proverbial

• proverbi

• “proverbial”, in Diccionari de la llengua catalana [Dictionary of the Catalan Language] (in Catalan), second edition, Institute of Catalan Studies [Catalan: Institut d'Estudis Catalans], April 2007

• Audio:

  (file)

proverbial (feminine proverbiale, masculine plural proverbiaux, feminine plural proverbiales)

1. proverbial

• “proverbial”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.

Borrowed from French proverbial.

proverbial m or n (feminine singular proverbială, masculine plural proverbiali, feminine and neuter plural proverbiale)

1. proverbial

From Latin prōverbiālis. Equivalent to proverbio +‎ -al

• IPA^(key): /pɾobeɾˈbjal/ [pɾo.β̞eɾˈβ̞jal]
• Rhymes: -al
• Syllabification: pro‧ver‧bial

proverbial m or f (masculine and feminine plural proverbiales)

1. proverbial

• “proverbial”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.8, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 10 December 2024