mythology

American  

[mi-thol-uh-jee] / mɪˈθɒl ə dʒi /

noun

• mythologies
  plural

1. a body of myths, as that of a particular people or that relating to a particular person.

   Greek mythology.

2. myths collectively.

3. the science or study of myths.

4. a set of stories, traditions, or beliefs associated with a particular group or the history of an event, arising naturally or deliberately fostered.

   the Fascist mythology of the interwar years.

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mythology British  

/ mɪˈθɒlədʒɪ /

noun

1. a body of myths, esp one associated with a particular culture, institution, person, etc

2. a body of stories about a person, institution, etc

   the mythology of Hollywood

3. myths collectively

4. the study or collecting of myths

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mythology Cultural  

1. The body of myths belonging to a culture. Myths are traditional stories about gods and heroes. They often account for the basic aspects of existence — explaining, for instance, how the Earth was created, why people have to die, or why the year is divided into seasons. Classical mythology — the myths of the ancient Greeks and Romans — has had an enormous influence on European and American culture.

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• mythologies
  plural

Etymology

Origin of mythology

1375–1425; late Middle English mythologie < Late Latin mȳthologia < Greek mȳthología. See mytho-, -logy

Explanation

A mythology is a collection of myths or stories about a specific person, culture, religion, or any group with shared beliefs. Most people don’t consider mythology to be entirely true, but they still take it seriously. A myth is a story about the olden days, often featuring supernatural characters, and a mythology is a bunch of myths that are related to each other. Greek mythology is filled with tales about relationships between gods and humans, usually with gods pulling pranks all the time. Christian mythology tells the story of God creating the Earth and everything after. Mythology can also mean the study of myths in an academic situation, like studying mythology at a university.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

mythology mythologies

The bust on sale depicts Daphne, Apollo's first love in Greek mythology, and is inscribed with the Latin phrase "me fecit Roma" - translating to "Rome made me".

From BBC ● Sep. 15, 2026

In Greek mythology, the volcano was associated with the burial of the giants Typhon and Enceladus after they were defeated by the Olympian gods.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 14, 2026

Through the hotel window, the home of nearly 4 million residents appeared to organize itself around mythology.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 11, 2026

UFO mythology, and especially its mock-scientific terminology, is a way of domesticating the unknown.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 28, 2026

Most of the books about the stories of classical mythology depend chiefly upon the Latin poet Ovid, who wrote during the reign of Augustus.

From "Mythology: Timeless Tales of Gods and Heroes" by Edith Hamilton

“Wifredo Lam,” organized by MoMA’s Christophe Cherix and Beverly Adams with Damasia Lacroze and Eva Caston, reveals the full scope of Lam’s esoteric fusion of myriad sources, symbols, mythologies and artistic styles.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 31, 2026

“The more you look at her work, the more you see personal histories, mythologies, cultures and media, all interwoven into a totality of human experience,” says Michael Govan, chief executive and director of LACMA.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 20, 2024

Timothée Chalamet, for example, is hugely popular - but his most recent hits have been Dune and Wonka, which had their own existing fanbases and mythologies.

From BBC ● May 24, 2024

It features more than one hundred objects that, as the exhibition description puts it, “mine the iconographies and mythologies embedded in everyday consumer culture.”

From New York Times ● May 3, 2024

He reads histories and mythologies and fairy tales, wondering why it seems that only girls are ever swept away from their mundane lives on farms by knights or princes or wolves.

From "The Night Circus" by Erin Morgenstern

Related Words

• belief
• legend
• lore
• tradition