an old wives' tale



an old wives' tale

a piece of advice or an idea which a lot of people believed in the past but which we now know is wrong It's an old wives' tale that drinking alcohol before you go to bed helps you sleep.
See also: old, tale

Common Names:

NameGenderPronouncedUsage
MaikeMIE-kə (German)Frisian, German
Ujarak-Native American, Inuit
Faiga-Yiddish
TashaTASH-ə (English)Russian, English
Tikva-Hebrew
Magee[mə'gi:]