fabulist

American  

[fab-yuh-list] / ˈfæb yə lɪst /

noun

1. a person who invents or relates fables.

2. a liar.

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fabulist British  

/ ˈfæbjʊlɪst /

noun

1. a person who invents or recounts fables

2. a person who lies or falsifies

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Etymology

Origin of fabulist

1585–95; < Middle French fabuliste, equivalent to < fābul ( a ) fable + -iste -ist

Explanation

A fabulist is a storyteller. Your uncle who spends holiday gatherings telling stories that end with clear morals is a fabulist, and so is your cousin who invents long, complicated excuses for being late to school every morning. Someone who writes or recites fables — moralistic tales that often feature animals as characters — is one kind of fabulist. The ancient Greek fabulist Aesop, for example, composed many stories about talking animals that ended with important moral lessons. Another kind of fabulist is a person who tells tall tales, or who lies. The root of fabulist is the Old French fable, "lie or pretense," from the Latin fabula, "story, play, or tale," or literally, "that which is told."

Example Sentences

Apparently Congress’ expelled fabulist will always keep us guessing.

From Slate • Mar. 13, 2024

The candidates were competing to replace George Santos, a serial fabulist who made the district a national laughingstock, and an Election Day snowstorm gave Suozzi an 11th-hour boost.

From Seattle Times • Feb. 14, 2024

It doesn’t need a fact checker so much as a fabulist.

From New York Times • Feb. 6, 2024

George Santos, the infamous fabulist, got the boot from Congress last week.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 5, 2023

So speaks my friend in the expressive Provençal idiom, rehabilitating the creature so libelled by the fabulist.

From Social Life in the Insect World by Miall, Bernard