urban legend
noun
: an often lurid story or anecdote that is based on hearsay and widely circulated as true
the urban legend of alligators living in the sewers
called also urban myth
Examples of urban legend in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Starring Virginia Madsen as a graduate student studying urban legend, this emotionally fraught ghost story uses the Cabrini-Green housing projects of Chicago to examine Black marginalization, the cycle of violence, and racial identity as portrayed through the lens of the white savior complex.
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Wilson Chapman, IndieWire, 17 Sep. 2024
Many have speculated for years that Rakim ghostwrote his verses, but that urban legend was put to rest in a recent moment between the pair.
—Angel Diaz, Billboard, 25 July 2024
Based on an urban legend out of Bangalore about a malevolent witch who roams the streets at night preying on unsuspecting men, convincing them to open their doors by mimicing the voices of the men’s mother, wife, or sister.
—Jill Goldsmith, Deadline, 18 Aug. 2024
The episode’s prologue features static video portraits of people in tragic news stories — or perhaps anecdotes or urban legends à la Paul Thomas Anderson’s Magnolia — as the voice of Mercy (Ji-young Yoo) narrates the injuries, deaths, and familial suffering each of them accidentally caused.
—Siddhant Adlakha, Vulture, 26 Jan. 2024
See all Example Sentences for urban legend 
Wilson Chapman, IndieWire, 17 Sep. 2024
Many have speculated for years that Rakim ghostwrote his verses, but that urban legend was put to rest in a recent moment between the pair.
—Angel Diaz, Billboard, 25 July 2024
Based on an urban legend out of Bangalore about a malevolent witch who roams the streets at night preying on unsuspecting men, convincing them to open their doors by mimicing the voices of the men’s mother, wife, or sister.
—Jill Goldsmith, Deadline, 18 Aug. 2024
The episode’s prologue features static video portraits of people in tragic news stories — or perhaps anecdotes or urban legends à la Paul Thomas Anderson’s Magnolia — as the voice of Mercy (Ji-young Yoo) narrates the injuries, deaths, and familial suffering each of them accidentally caused.
—Siddhant Adlakha, Vulture, 26 Jan. 2024
See all Example Sentences for urban legend
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'urban legend.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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“Urban legend.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/urban%20legend. Accessed 2 Oct. 2024.
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