fa·ble
(fā′bəl)n.
1. A usually short narrative making an edifying or cautionary point and often employing as characters animals that speak and act like humans.
2. A story about legendary persons and exploits.
3. A falsehood; a lie.
v. fa·bled, fa·bling, fa·bles
v.tr.
To recount as if true.
v.intr. Archaic
To compose fables.
[Middle English, from Old French, from Latin fābula, from fārī, to speak; see bhā- in Indo-European roots.]
fa′bler n.
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
fable
(ˈfeɪbəl)n
1. (Literary & Literary Critical Terms) a short moral story, esp one with animals as characters
2. a false, fictitious, or improbable account; fiction or lie
3. (Literary & Literary Critical Terms) a story or legend about supernatural or mythical characters or events
4. (Literary & Literary Critical Terms) legends or myths collectively.
5. (Literary & Literary Critical Terms) archaic the plot of a play or of an epic or dramatic poem
vb
6. to relate or tell (fables)
7. (intr) to speak untruthfully; tell lies
8. (tr) to talk about or describe in the manner of a fable: ghosts are fabled to appear at midnight.
[C13: from Latin fābula story, narrative, from fārī to speak, say]
ˈfabler n
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014
fa•ble
(ˈfeɪ bəl)n., v. -bled, -bling. n.
1. a short tale used to teach a moral, often with animals as characters.
2. a story not founded on fact.
3. a legend or myth.
4. lie; falsehood.
v.i. 5. Archaic.to tell or write fables.
v.t. 6. to describe as if true.
[1250–1300; Middle English < Anglo-French, Old French < Latin fābula a story, tale =fā(ri) to speak + -bula suffix of instrument]
fa′bler, n.
syn: See legend.
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.
fable
Past participle: fabled
Gerund: fabling
| Imperative |
|---|
| fable |
| fable |
Collins English Verb Tables © HarperCollins Publishers 2011
fable
A short, allegorical story to point a moral, especially using animal characters.
Dictionary of Unfamiliar Words by Diagram Group Copyright © 2008 by Diagram Visual Information Limited
ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:
| Noun | 1. |  fable - a deliberately false or improbable accountcanard - a deliberately misleading fabrication |
| 2. |  fable - a short moral story (often with animal characters)story - a piece of fiction that narrates a chain of related events; "he writes stories for the magazines" Aesop's fables - a collection of fables believed to have been written by the Greek storyteller Aesop | |
| 3. |  fable - a story about mythical or supernatural beings or eventsKing Arthur's Round Table, Round Table - (legend) the circular table for King Arthur and his knights story - a piece of fiction that narrates a chain of related events; "he writes stories for the magazines" Arthurian legend - the legend of King Arthur and his court at Camelot hagiology - literature narrating the lives (and legends) of the saints Midas - (Greek legend) the greedy king of Phrygia who Dionysus gave the power to turn everything he touched into gold Sisyphus - (Greek legend) a king in ancient Greece who offended Zeus and whose punishment was to roll a huge boulder to the top of a steep hill; each time the boulder neared the top it rolled back down and Sisyphus was forced to start again |
Based on WordNet 3.0, Farlex clipart collection. © 2003-2012 Princeton University, Farlex Inc.
fable
noun
1. legend, myth, parable, allegory, story, tale, apologue Each tale has the timeless quality of fable.
2. fiction, lie, fantasy, myth, romance, invention, yarn (informal), fabrication, falsehood, fib, figment, untruth, fairy story (informal), urban myth, white lie, tall story (informal), urban legend Is reincarnation fact or fable?
fiction fact, truth, reality, certainty, verity, actuality
fiction fact, truth, reality, certainty, verity, actuality
Related words
adjective fabulous
adjective fabulous
Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002
fable
noun2. An entertaining and often oral account of a real or fictitious occurrence:
The American Heritage® Roget's Thesaurus. Copyright © 2013, 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Translations
حِكايَهخُرافَه
bajkalegendavýmysl
fabelfablemytesagn
puhuasatusepittää
bajka
állatmesekoholköltmesemesél
dæmisagaòjóîsaga, lygasaga
mitasmitinispasakėčiapasakiškaipasakiškas
fabulaizdomājums
bájka
basen
berättelsesaga
Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005
fable
[ˈfeɪbəl] n (= moral story) → fable f
(= untrue story) → histoire f
The story he told the police was a pure fable
BUT L'histoire qu'il a racontée à la police était créée de toutes pièces.
Is it fact or fable?
BUT Est-ce vrai ou faux?.
The story he told the police was a pure fable
BUT L'histoire qu'il a racontée à la police était créée de toutes pièces.
Is it fact or fable?
BUT Est-ce vrai ou faux?.
Collins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005
fable
Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007
Collins Italian Dictionary 1st Edition © HarperCollins Publishers 1995
fable
(ˈfeibl) noun1. a story (usually about animals) that teaches a lesson about human behaviour. Aesop's fables.
2. a legend or untrue story. fact or fable?
fabulous (ˈfӕbjuləs) adjective1. wonderful. a fabulous idea.
2. existing (only) in a fable. The phoenix is a fabulous bird.
ˈfabulously adverbKernerman English Multilingual Dictionary © 2006-2013 K Dictionaries Ltd.