parable

 
Pronunciation: /ˈparəb(ə)l/

noun

  • a simple story used to illustrate a moral or spiritual lesson, as told by Jesus in the Gospels: the parable of the blind men and the elephant a modern-day parable

Origin:

Middle English: from Old French parabole, from an ecclesiastical Latin sense 'discourse, allegory' of Latin parabola 'comparison', from Greek parabolē (see parabola)