Literature Glossary
Don’t be an oxymoron. Know your literary terms.
Over 200 literary terms, Shmooped to perfection.
Apocrypha
Definition:
Oh, what a difference a letter makes.
With a capital "A," Apocrypha refers specifically to a group of fourteen Old Testament books that Protestants leave out of the Bible because they aren't canon (a fancy word for all the influential books that the higher-ups agree are important).
With a little "a," though, apocrypha is a plural word that can be used to refer to any writings where the author's—or even the whole text's—authenticity is as questionable as that week-old take-out in the back of your fridge.
Most folktales and urban legends are apocryphal, for example, because nobody knows who created them and they're probably not true—which is bad news if you're Paul Bunyan's #1 fan, but good news if you were worried about that drifter with a hook for a hand interrupting your date this weekend.