proverbial

C2 Topic:Describing Qualities

US /prəˈvɝːbiːəl/ UK /pɹəˈvɜɹb.iː.əl/ See IPA manual

Freq #22408

Meanings

1

adj
Used before a word from a well-known saying or metaphor to show you are not speaking literally.

After months of saving, they finally found the proverbial pot of gold.
2

adj
Widely known and often talked about; famous.

The proverbial lateness of the students annoyed the teachers.
3

adj
Of or expressed as a proverb.

The busyness of the beaver is proverbial.

Thesaurus

Word family

Forms proverbially

Derived forms proverbialiseproverbialismproverbialistproverbialityproverbializeproverbiallyproverbialnessunproverbial

Etymology

From Latin prōverbiālis, equivalent to proverb + -ial

Topics

Describing Qualities Word Formation & Derivatives

External links

# proverbial

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2
**Part of speech:** adj
**IPA (US):** /prəˈvɝːbiːəl/
**IPA (UK):** /pɹəˈvɜɹb.iː.əl/
**Frequency rank:** 22408

## Meanings
1. Used before a word from a well-known saying or metaphor to show you are not speaking literally.
2. Widely known and often talked about; famous.
3. Of or expressed as a proverb.

## Examples
- After months of saving, they finally found the proverbial pot of gold.
- The proverbial lateness of the students annoyed the teachers.
- The busyness of the beaver is proverbial.

## Derived Forms
- proverbialise
- proverbialism
- proverbialist
- proverbiality
- proverbialize
- proverbially
- proverbialness
- unproverbial

## Etymology
From Latin prōverbiālis, equivalent to proverb + -ial

## AI Etymology
Proverbial is from Latin prōverbiālis, equivalent to proverb + -ial. The analysis is mainly morphological: the modern adjectival form is built from the named base and affix. Current senses include used before a word from a well-known saying or metaphor to show you are not speaking literally, widely known and often talked about; famous, and of or expressed as a proverb. The wider family includes derived forms such as proverbialise, proverbialism, proverbialist, proverbiality, and proverbialize.

## Topics
- Describing Qualities
- Word Formation & Derivatives

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