fabella

See also: Fabella

English

Etymology

Borrowed from New Latin fabella, diminutive of Latin faba (“bean”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /fəˈbɛlə/

• Audio (Southern England):

  (file)

• Hyphenation: fa‧bel‧la

Noun

fabella (plural fabellae)

1. (anatomy) One of the small sesamoid bones situated behind the condyles of the femur, in some mammals.

Latin

Etymology 1

From fābula +‎ -la (diminutive suffix).

Noun

fābella f (genitive fābellae); first declension

1. diminutive of fābula (“fable, tale, story”)

Declension

First-declension noun.

	singular	plural
nominative	fābella	fābellae
genitive	fābellae	fābellārum
dative	fābellae	fābellīs
accusative	fābellam	fābellās
ablative	fābellā	fābellīs
vocative	fābella	fābellae

Derived terms

• fābellor

Descendants

• Italo-Romance:
  • Italian: favella
• Rhaeto-Romance:
  • Romansch: faveala, faviala
• Gallo-Romance:
  • Old French: favele
    • → Middle English: favel
      • English: favel

Etymology 2

faba (“bean”) +‎ -ellus. From its bean-like shape and size, in some animals.

Noun

fabella f

1. (anatomy) fabella (the posterior analogue of the anterior patella)

Declension

First-declension noun.

	singular	plural
nominative	fabella	fabellae
genitive	fabellae	fabellārum
dative	fabellae	fabellīs
accusative	fabellam	fabellās
ablative	fabellā	fabellīs
vocative	fabella	fabellae

References

• “fabella”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• “fabella”, in Charlton T. Lewis (1891), An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers
• "fabella", in Charles du Fresne du Cange’s Glossarium Mediæ et Infimæ Latinitatis (augmented edition with additions by D. P. Carpenterius, Adelungius and others, edited by Léopold Favre, 1883–1887)
• “fabella”, in Gaffiot, Félix (1934), Dictionnaire illustré latin-français, Hachette.
• Carl Meißner; Henry William Auden (1894), Latin Phrase-Book‎, London: Macmillan and Co.
  • an anecdote: narratiuncula, fabella (Fin. 5. 15)