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Glite Dictionary
tale of Job

tale of Job

9.1
A story from the Bible about a man who keeps his faith during great suffering
  • noun
  • Literature
translation icon : historia de Job
  • Many people are reminded of the tale of Job when dealing with prolonged hardships.

Examples

  • He referenced the tale of Job to encourage his friend to persevere.

  • The sermon used the tale of Job to illustrate faith during adversity.

  • The tale of Job teaches us about resilience.

  • Many people find inspiration in the tale of Job.

  • The tale of Job teaches us to remain steadfast in the face of adversity.

  • Many people find comfort in the tale of Job when they are going through tough times.

  • In literature classes, we often discuss the tale of Job to explore themes of suffering and resilience.

Synonyms

Job
vstale of Job
88 7.0

An Old Testament book that tells the story of a man who suffers and keeps his faith

focuses on the story's moral of patience and endurance rather than factual detail
Book of Job
vstale of Job
  • Literature
2 7.9

A book in the Bible that tells of a man who suffers and God answers him

highlights patience and endurance as the main lesson rather than the full narrative

Surface Forms

tale of Job singular
tales of Job plural

Morphology

tale + of + Job

The meaning 'a story about Job' is directly and compositionally derived from 'tale' (a story) + 'of' (about/belonging to) + 'Job' (the biblical figure). Given knowledge of the constituents, the phrase follows a common cross-linguistic 'tale of X' pattern, so a B1 learner who knows the words can infer the MWE's meaning.

Etymology

Tale of Job comes from the Bible story of Job, a man who lost his family, health, and money but kept his faith and stayed patient. That's why people use it today to talk about a long time of trouble or to show 'patience' and 'endurance'.