noun · verb · 9 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot
Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.
Sound
Pronunciation
Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.
fā′bəl
/ˈfeɪbəl/
US:Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
rhymes with -eɪbəl
CMU ARPABET:F EY1 B AH0 L
Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.
1
noun
Meaning 1
A fictitious narrative intended to enforce some useful truth or precept, usually with animals, etc. as characters; an apologue. Prototypically, Aesop's Fables.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: morality play
Antonyms: none provided
2
noun
Meaning 2
Any story told to excite wonder; common talk; the theme of talk.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: legend
Antonyms: none provided
3
noun
Meaning 3
Fiction; untruth; falsehood.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
4
noun
Meaning 4
The plot, story, or connected series of events forming the subject of an epic or dramatic poem.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
5
verb
Meaning 5
To compose fables; hence, to write or speak fiction; to write or utter what is not true.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: archaic, intransitive
Examples
1852, Matthew Arnold, Empedocles on Etna, Act II, in Empedocles on Etna and Other Poems, London: B. Fellowes, p. 50, He fables, yet speaks truth.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
6
verb
Meaning 6
To make up; to devise, and speak of, as true or real; to tell of falsely; to recount in the form of a fable.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: archaic, transitive
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: make up, invent, feign, devise
Antonyms: none provided
7
noun
Meaning 7
a story about mythical or supernatural beings or events
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: legend
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: story
Narrower terms: Arthurian legend
8
noun
Meaning 8
a short moral story (often with animal characters)
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: fabrication, fiction
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: falsehood, falsity, untruth
Narrower terms: canard
History
Etymology
From Middle English, borrowed from Old French fable, from Latin fābula, from fārī (“to speak, say”) + -bula (“instrumental suffix”). See ban, and compare fabulous, fame. Doublet of fabula.
Across languages
Translations
192 source translations are retained for this English entry.
Aghwan:
𐔸𐔰𐕃𐕒𐕡𐕘𐔴𐕒𐕡𐕢𐔴𐕚𐕒𐕡𐕎
(taʒ́uġeupesun)
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Aghwan:
𐔱𐔰𐔸𐔴𐕣𐔰𐔾𐔼𐕅
(batekalil')
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Akan:
anansesem
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Albanian:
fabul
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Albanian:
përrallë
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Arabic:
خُرَافَة
(ḵurāfa)
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Arabic:
أُسْطُورَة
(ʔusṭūra)
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Armenian:
առակ
(aṙak)
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Azerbaijani:
əfsanə
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Azerbaijani:
təmsil
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Bashkir:
мәҫәл
(məśəl)
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Belarusian:
ба́йка
(bájka)
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Bengali:
রূপকথা
(rupkotha)
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Bengali:
উপকথা
(upokotha)
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Bulgarian:
ба́сня
(básnja)
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Bulgarian:
при́тча
(prítča)
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Burmese:
ပုံပြင်
(pumprang)
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Burmese:
ရှေးစကား
(hre:ca.ka:)
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Catalan:
faula
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Cherepon:
anansesem
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Chinese Cantonese:
寓言
(jyu6 jin4)
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Chinese:
寓言
(gū-giân)
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Chinese Mandarin:
寓言
(yùyán)
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Czech:
bajka
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Danish:
fabel
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Danish:
eventyr
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Dutch:
fabel
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Esperanto:
fablo
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Estonian:
valm
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Finnish:
satu
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Finnish:
taru
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
French:
conte
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
French:
fable
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Saterland Frisian:
Foabel
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Georgian:
იგავი
(igavi)
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
German:
Fabel
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Gothic:
𐍃𐍀𐌹𐌻𐌻
(spill)
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Greek:
μύθος
(mýthos)
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Ancient Greek:
μῦθος
(mûthos)
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Ancient Greek:
αἶνος
(aînos)
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Hebrew:
מָשָׁל
(mashál)
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Hindi:
नीतिकथा
(nītikthā)
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Hindi:
फ़साना
(fasānā)
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Hungarian:
mese
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Hungarian:
tanítómese
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Hungarian:
fabula
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Icelandic:
dæmisaga
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Ido:
fablo
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Indonesian:
fabel
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Ingrian:
basnja
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Irish:
finscéal
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Italian:
fiaba
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Japanese:
寓言
(gūgen)
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Japanese:
寓話
(gūwa)
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Javanese:
dongèng
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Kazakh:
мысал
(mysal)
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Korean:
우언
(ueon)
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Korean:
우화
(uhwa)
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Lao:
ນິທານ
(ni thān)
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Lao:
ນິຍາຽ
(ni nyāi)
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Latin:
fābulātiō
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Latin:
apologus
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Latvian:
fabula
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Lithuanian:
pasakėčia
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Macedonian:
ба́сна
(básna)
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Māori:
pakikīrehe
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Māori:
kōrero tara
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Norwegian Bokmål:
fabel
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Norwegian Nynorsk:
fabel
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Occitan:
fabla
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Pashto:
افسانه
(afsāna)
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Pashto:
حکايت
(hekāyat)
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Iranian Persian:
اَفْسانِه
(afsâne)
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Iranian Persian:
مَتَل
(matal)
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Iranian Persian:
فابْل
(fâbl)
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Iranian Persian:
حِکایَت
(hekâyat)
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Polish:
bajka
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Portuguese:
fábula
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Romanian:
fabulă
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Romanian:
poveste
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Russian:
ба́сня
(básnja)
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Russian:
при́тча
(prítča)
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Russian:
ба́йка
(bájka)
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Russian:
ска́зка
(skázka)
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Serbo-Croatian:
ба̏сна
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Serbo-Croatian:
сказна
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Serbo-Croatian:
ба̑јка
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Serbo-Croatian:
bȁsna
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Serbo-Croatian:
skazna
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Serbo-Croatian:
bȃjka
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Slovak:
bájka
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Slovak:
rozprávka
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Slovene:
basen
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Spanish:
fábula
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Swahili:
hadithi
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Swedish:
saga
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Swedish:
berättelse
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Swedish:
fabel
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Tagalog:
pabula
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Tagalog:
sayguni
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Tajik:
масал
(masal)
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Tajik:
матал
(matal)
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Tajik:
афсона
(afsona)
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Tajik:
шуг
(šug)
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Tajik:
ҳикоят
(hikoyat)
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Tatar:
мәсәл
(mäsäl)
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Thai:
ตํานาน
(dtam-naan)
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Turkish:
fabl
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Turkish:
öykünce
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Ottoman Turkish:
افسانه
(efsane)
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Ottoman Turkish:
داستان
(dastan, destan)
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Ottoman Turkish:
اسطوره
(ustura)
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Ukrainian:
ба́йка
(bájka)
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Ukrainian:
ка́зка
(kázka)
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Urdu:
فَسانَہ
(fasāna)
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Urdu:
حِکایَت
(hikāyat)
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Uyghur:
مەسەل
(mesel)
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Uzbek:
masal
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Vietnamese:
ngụ ngôn
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Yiddish:
משל
(moshl)
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Zulu:
inganekwane
— fictitious narration to enforce some useful truth or precept
Bulgarian:
изми́слица
(izmíslica)
— story told to excite wonder
Chinese Mandarin:
神話 /神话
(shénhuà)
— story told to excite wonder
Chinese Mandarin:
傳說 /传说
(chuánshuō)
— story told to excite wonder
Finnish:
tarina
— story told to excite wonder
Finnish:
juttu
— story told to excite wonder
Finnish:
taru
— story told to excite wonder
Hebrew:
מעשייה
— story told to excite wonder
Hebrew:
מַעֲשִׂיָּה
(ma'asiyá)
— story told to excite wonder
Macedonian:
измислица
(izmislica)
— story told to excite wonder
Norwegian Bokmål:
eventyr
— story told to excite wonder
Polish:
opowieść
— story told to excite wonder
Romanian:
poveste
— story told to excite wonder
Romanian:
legendă
— story told to excite wonder
Russian:
небыли́ца
(nebylíca)
— story told to excite wonder
Russian:
вы́думка
(výdumka)
— story told to excite wonder
Russian:
ба́йка
(bájka)
— story told to excite wonder
Russian:
ска́зка
(skázka)
— story told to excite wonder
Ottoman Turkish:
افسانه
(efsane)
— story told to excite wonder
Ottoman Turkish:
داستان
(dastan, destan)
— story told to excite wonder
Ottoman Turkish:
اسطوره
(ustura)
— story told to excite wonder
