fable

[ fey-buh l ]

/ ˈfeɪ bəl /

noun

a short tale to teach a moral lesson, often with animals or inanimate objects as characters; apologue: the fable of the tortoise and the hare; Aesop's fables.

a story not founded on fact: This biography is largely a self-laudatory fable.

a story about supernatural or extraordinary persons or incidents; legend: the fables of gods and heroes.

legends or myths collectively: the heroes of Greek fable.

an untruth; falsehood: This boast of a cure is a medical fable.

the plot of an epic, a dramatic poem, or a play.

idle talk: old wives' fables.

verb (used without object), fa·bled, fa·bling.

to tell or write fables.

to speak falsely; lie: to fable about one's past.

verb (used with object), fa·bled, fa·bling.

to describe as if actually so; talk about as if true: She is fabled to be the natural daughter of a king.

Origin of fable

1250–1300; Middle English fable, fabel, fabul < Anglo-French, Old French < Latin fābula a story, tale, equivalent to fā(rī) to speak + -bula suffix of instrument

SYNONYMS FOR fable

1 See legend.

SEE SYNONYMS FOR fable ON THESAURUS.COM

OTHER WORDS FROM fable

fa·bler, noun out·fa·ble, verb (used with object), out·fa·bled, out·fa·bling. un·fa·bling, adjective

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH fable

fable legend myth (see synonym study at legend)

Words nearby fable

fabian, fabian society, fabian tactics, fabianism, fabius maximus, fable, fabled, fabliau, fablon, fabre, fabric

Example sentences from the Web for fable

It is a fable about an elderly woman, “Grandy,” who has suffered an unnamed loss.

Book Bag: Reading Your Way Out Of Grief |Anna Whiston-Donaldson |October 16, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
The fable tells us that if policymakers foster competition and cut taxes, the rest will pretty much work itself out.

What’s At Stake In The Tocqueville/Piketty Debate |James Poulos |April 27, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
Or let the ultimate tortois-and-hare campaign end just like the fable.

Against All Odds, Can Sarkozy Pull Out an Election Win vs. Hollande? |Tracy McNicoll |May 4, 2012 |DAILY BEAST
He had extraordinary luck at Baden: broke the bank several nights, and was the fable of the place.

The History of Pendennis |William Makepeace Thackeray

Shall we grasp at a shadow in the stream, like the dog in the fable, and drop the substance to sink away from us beyond recall?

Proceedings of the Second National Conservation Congress |Various
The godmother's greatest gift, I should say, though the fable lays little stress on it, was a capacity for unalloyed delight.

The Real Adventure |Henry Kitchell Webster
The fable or parable was anciently, as it is even now, a favourite weapon of the most successful orators.

The Fables of La Fontaine |Jean de la Fontaine
The story of the life of this extraordinary man reads like a fable.

American Men of Action |Burton E. Stevenson

British Dictionary definitions for fable

fable

/ (ˈfeɪbəl) /

noun

a short moral story, esp one with animals as characters

a false, fictitious, or improbable account; fiction or lie

a story or legend about supernatural or mythical characters or events

legends or myths collectively Related adjective: fabulous

archaic the plot of a play or of an epic or dramatic poem

verb

to relate or tell (fables)

(intr) to speak untruthfully; tell lies

(tr) to talk about or describe in the manner of a fable ghosts are fabled to appear at midnight

Derived forms of fable

fabler, noun

Word Origin for fable

C13: from Latin fābula story, narrative, from fārī to speak, say

BROWSE DICTIONARY

Learning

fable

noun

verb (used without object), fa·bled, fa·bling.

verb (used with object), fa·bled, fa·bling.

Origin of fable

SYNONYMS FOR fable

OTHER WORDS FROM fable

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH fable

Words nearby fable

Example sentences from the Web for fable

British Dictionary definitions for fable

noun

verb

Derived forms of fable

Word Origin for fable

BROWSE DICTIONARY

Learning

fable

noun

verb (used without object), fa·bled, fa·bling.

verb (used with object), fa·bled, fa·bling.

Origin of fable

SYNONYMS FOR fable

OTHER WORDS FROM fable

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH fable

Words nearby fable

Words related to fable

Example sentences from the Web for fable

(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []) .push({}); British Dictionary definitions for fable

noun

verb

Derived forms of fable

Word Origin for fable

British Dictionary definitions for fable