Forebisne

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A model or example held up for others to imitate ; a representation or picture that resembles someone or something ; a moral story told to teach a lesson
2. An exemplar meant to be copied by others ; a portrait or depiction of a person or thing ; a figurative tale conveying a spiritual or ethical truth
3. A pattern offered as a guide for conduct ; an image that bears the likeness of a being ; a symbolic narrative that carries a hidden moral meaning

Etymology: The word belongs to the Middle English vocabulary of example and instruction. Its Old English ancestor, "forebisen," meant a model to follow, a pattern, or a parable: something set before people so they could see what to imitate or avoid. The prefix "fore-" carries the sense of "before" or "in front of," so the image is of an example placed in plain view. Its history in English is largely one of decline. Its meaning overlapped with words that survived more strongly, such as "example" and "parable," which came into English from Latin and French and gradually took over its role. By the later Middle Ages it had become uncommon, and it did not survive into standard modern English. Its later use is confined to older texts and dictionary entries, so readers mainly meet it in historical writing.