fables

noun

plural of fable
1
as in allegories
a story intended to teach a basic truth or moral about life this classic Christmas film is essentially a fable showing how every person's life has meaning and touches the lives of others

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2
as in myths
a traditional but unfounded story that gives the reason for a current custom, belief, or fact of nature according to an ancient fable the waters of the mountain spring are the tears of a woman weeping for her lost children

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3
as in tales
something that is the product of the imagination the stories of lost cities of gold may have been fables deliberately concocted by Native Americans to dupe the Spanish

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
4
as in lies
a statement known by its maker to be untrue and made in order to deceive the fables that people tell themselves to rationalize their failures and shortcomings

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of fables Likewise, Schoenbrun specializes in zeitgeisty fables about 21st century isolation. — Amy Nicholson, Los Angeles Times, 6 Aug. 2026 Explore the Wild West from the back of a rickety wagon as characters share famed fables about Paul Bunyan, Babe the Blue Ox, Pecos Bill, John Henry and Hekeke. — Nicole Bennett, AJC.com, 10 July 2026 In 1964, Time, which then had a circulation of more than 3 million, ran a cover story on John Cheever, the author known for his dark fables of suburban malaise. — Rose Horowitch, The Atlantic, 8 July 2026 My dad’s stories about his grade-school experience felt like dark fables, peppered with slurs hurled at him by classmates. — Rachel Tepper Paley, Bon Appetit Magazine, 1 July 2026 The novel has a freewheeling spirit that recalls Italo Calvino’s space fables in Cosmicomics. — Literary Hub, 11 June 2026 The collection spans centuries of storytelling in multiple genres, from migratory fairytales with kings and princesses to legends of ghosts and the Devil to fables with talking animals. — Mary Ann Grossmann, Twin Cities, 7 June 2026 Fortnum & Mason does not need a goose from Aesop’s fables to have a golden egg. — Air Mail, 4 Apr. 2026 Both fables and translations are forms of constrained writing. — Jan Steyn, The Dial, 10 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for fables
  1. allegories
  2. myths
  3. tales
  4. lies
  5. parables
  6. legends
  7. fictions
  8. stories
Noun
  • There are allegories that can be read about fear of the unknown breeding cruelty and exploitation, but Disclosure Day is first and foremost a propulsive yarn with thematic roots in hope, truth, empathy and perhaps even spirituality.
    — David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 9 June 2026
  • Sci-fi stories about alien invasions have often functioned as political allegories for anxieties around empire and immigration, Lechuga says.
    — Harmeet Kaur, CNN Money, 3 June 2026
Definition of allegories
Noun
  • Luckily with the advent of social media, more people are sharing their experiences with these conditions, and this will hopefully contribute to the dispelling of myths about these conditions.
    — Forbes.com, Forbes.com, 30 Aug. 2026
  • Visitors are invited to travel across time and place to notice how societies around the world tended to weave similar, parallel myths.
    — Devorah Lauter, ARTnews.com, 28 Aug. 2026
Definition of myths
Noun
  • In forums on Reddit, women share tales of having perimenopause and menopause symptoms misdiagnosed or dismissed as mental health disorders, early-onset dementia, or autoimmune issues, resulting in months or years of unnecessary testing.
    — Yulin Hswen, STAT, 27 Aug. 2026
  • Vedder’s elliptical tales of adolescent trauma were a perfect fit with music that blended classic-rock tropes (especially McCready’s solos) with punk energy, grunge guitar tones and the groove-heavy vibe of early-Nineties alt-rock.
    — Brian Hiatt, Rolling Stone, 27 Aug. 2026
Definition of tales
Noun
  • From February 2022 until they were arrested on Monday, Love and Chan solicited money from women in California, Oregon, Washington and Idaho through lies and misrepresentations, according to the United States Attorney’s Office in Portland.
    — Steve Henson, Los Angeles Times, 27 Aug. 2026
  • The film follows an 11-year-old boy who exploits his brother’s tragic death to fight his father and his community, until his lies expose the hypocrisy and corruption beneath a seemingly moral society.
    — Christopher Vourlias, Variety, 21 Aug. 2026
Definition of lies
Noun
  • The pair’s mysterious interactions in the early chapters give way to a series of parables of doubt and belief, in which a rational character is confronted by an irrational event—and immediately convinced of its absolute truth.
    — Robert Rubsam, The Atlantic, 20 July 2026
  • Jesus taught his followers by his remarkable example, including innumerable healings, as well as through his sermons and parables.
    — Eric Bashor, Christian Science Monitor, 13 July 2026
Definition of parables
Noun
  • Even though it was recorded remotely, their new version of the song is incredibly soulful, the effortless meeting of two legends who were clearly meant to harmonize together.
    — Ernesto Lechner, Rolling Stone, 26 Aug. 2026
  • Our state is a pigskin peninsula that has spent generations producing quarterback legends.
    — Mike Bianchi, The Orlando Sentinel, 26 Aug. 2026
Definition of legends
Noun
  • The ultimate object of these fictions is disorientation, more than belief.
    — David Denby, New Yorker, 10 Aug. 2026
  • Invasion fictions tended to spring up in response to each new form of invasion panic.
    — Ivan Kreilkamp, JSTOR Daily, 10 June 2026
Definition of fictions
Noun
  • During their visit, the wife talked incessantly, sharing stories about their family members in great detail.
    — R. Eric Thomas, Washington Post, 31 Aug. 2026
  • Elwood’s conversations with CNN were peppered with alarming stories and punctuated by his broad, disarming laugh.
    — Rob Picheta, CNN Money, 30 Aug. 2026
Definition of stories

Browse Nearby Words

fabled
fables
fabric
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Cite this Entry

“Fables.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/fables. Accessed 1 Sep. 2026.

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