fable
To compose fables; hence, to write or speak fiction; to write or utter what is not trueTo compose fables; hence, to write or speak fiction; to write or utter what is not true.
» What's the difference between a fable and a fairytale?
Чем басня отличается от сказки? — marafon
CK · Tatoeba · CC BY 2.0 FRMeaning
2 senses(archaic, intransitive)To compose fables; hence, to write or speak fiction; to write or utter what is not true.
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.
fabulieren
(archaic, transitive)To make up; to devise, and speak of, as true or real; to tell of falsely; to recount in the form of a fable.
Examples
29 sentencesWhat's the difference between a fable and a fairytale?
ruЧем басня отличается от сказки? — marafon
It's a fable about busy ants.
ruЭто басня о трудолюбивых муравьях. — marafon
Every fable ends up with a moral.
ruКаждая басня кончается моралью. — corvard
I regaled the devil; he gave me a fable.
deDem Teufel bot ich Speis’ und Trank; als Preis erscholl zum Dank ein Schwank. — Pfirsichbaeumchen
Our manager would always speak to us in fables.
Translations
2 languagesBy meaning 1
Origin
From Middle English, borrowed from Old French fable, from Latin fābula, from fārī (“to speFrom 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.
Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · source
Forms
fables, fabling, fabled, fabledSynonyms
4 synonymsWord family
1 related wordsLessons for this word
3 lessons- A1Present simple — Because it is a verb
- A1Past simple, regular verbs — Because of its past form
- A2Present perfect: introduction — Because of its past participle
See also
neighbours in the dictionaryDictionary text adapted from Wiktionary (Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0) and Open English WordNet / Princeton WordNet (CC BY 4.0, WordNet License); shared under CC BY-SA 4.0. Example sentences and recordings are credited where they appear.