Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “fable” come from?

Fable comes from Old French fable, from Latin fabula, from Latin for, ultimately derived from Proto-Indo-European bʰeh₂- meaning to speak or tell.

fable (English): A fictitious narrative intended to enforce some...

Definitions

  1. A fictitious narrative intended to enforce some...

Ancestry of “fable”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Frenchfablefable, story
2Latinfābula—
3Latin-ulusUsed to form a diminutive of a noun, indicating...
4Proto-Italic-olos—
5Proto-Italic-elos—
6Proto-Indo-European-e-lós—
7Proto-Indo-European-lósForms agent nouns from verbal roots

Words derived from “fable”

  • fib
  • fibber
  • fabler
  • fablelike
  • fibster
  • fibbery
  • semifable
  • fablo
  • fablo
Every word from Proto-Indo-European -lós →