1
as in story
a relating of events usually in the order in which they happened
wrote a witty, chatty narrative of all the happenings at the party
Synonyms & Similar Words
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2
as in tale
a work with imaginary characters and events that is shorter and usually less complex than a novel
in such narratives as "The Murders in the Rue Morgue" and "The Purloined Letter," Edgar Allan Poe essentially created the modern detective story
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of narrative
The Hold Steady frontman’s sixth solo album has been praised for its groovy narrative skeleton.
—
Brittany Allen, Literary Hub, 31 Oct. 2025
The movie’s narrative [spoilers ahead] revolves around the lovely circus aerialist Cleopatra, who romantically pursues little person Hans, a performer in the sideshow.
—JSTOR Daily, 30 Oct. 2025
There’s a common, but untrue, narrative that certain sets of scientific dogmas, like the Earth being stationary and the center of the Universe, could not be challenged.
—Big Think, 30 Oct. 2025
The core narrative revolves around a group of guests at a country cottage telling scary stories, each of which is helmed by a different director.
—Katie Rife, Entertainment Weekly, 30 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for narrative
Brittany Allen, Literary Hub, 31 Oct. 2025
The movie’s narrative [spoilers ahead] revolves around the lovely circus aerialist Cleopatra, who romantically pursues little person Hans, a performer in the sideshow.
—JSTOR Daily, 30 Oct. 2025
There’s a common, but untrue, narrative that certain sets of scientific dogmas, like the Earth being stationary and the center of the Universe, could not be challenged.
—Big Think, 30 Oct. 2025
The core narrative revolves around a group of guests at a country cottage telling scary stories, each of which is helmed by a different director.
—Katie Rife, Entertainment Weekly, 30 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for narrative
Recent Examples of Synonyms for narrative
Noun
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Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.—
Jillian Frankel,
PEOPLE,
28 Oct. 2025
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On expedition, the hunter who joined me on polar bear watch was relating a story from his grandfather who told him the telling sign of narwhal appearance.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
28 Oct. 2025
Noun
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Folklorist Thomas Keightley tells the tale of a kobold named Hödeken who was insulted by a kitchen boy who kept spraying water at him.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
27 Oct. 2025
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And then at some point, the movie turns into a full-on tale of modern-age sorcery, shifting from its historical roots into an arthouse genre flick replete with fire and demons.—
Jordan Mintzer,
HollywoodReporter,
27 Oct. 2025
Noun
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Since filmmaking is both costly and complex, the French model structures a film’s life cycle to reflect levels of investment — allowing those who contribute the most to appear earliest in the chronology, and those who follow to participate proportionally.—
Elsa Keslassy,
Variety,
28 Oct. 2025
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As a historian, the first thing is chronology.—
Andy Greene,
Rolling Stone,
27 Oct. 2025
Noun
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Andrésen is known for his role in Death in Venice, Italian director Luchino Visconti’s adaptation of the 1912 novella of the same name by German author Thomas Mann.—
Jesse Whittock,
Deadline,
27 Oct. 2025
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In the book, Malahy detailed the numerous catastrophes that surrounded the months spent filming the movie, a loose adaptation of Joseph Conrad's 1899 novella, Heart of Darkness, in the Philippines.—
Angela Andaloro,
PEOPLE,
25 Oct. 2025
Noun
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Jacksonville businesses of all kinds have been affected by the downstream effects of the second-longest government shutdown in history, including Chicken Country, a restaurant that has provided the area with Southern cooking for about 50 years.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
31 Oct. 2025
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In her exhaustive chronicle, Jennings traces the long folkloric history of monk-tormenting demons.—
JSTOR Daily,
JSTOR Daily,
31 Oct. 2025
Noun
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While its initial focus was cross-border payments, Zhang said the company’s revenue is now spread over an array of products, with business accounts similar to Mercury comprising 34% of its revenue, spend management 20%, and payments 30%.—
Leo Schwartz,
Fortune,
3 Nov. 2025
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But as was proven later, in conflicting accounts like the ones here, the Band didn’t quite go quietly into that night.—
David Browne,
Rolling Stone,
2 Nov. 2025
Noun
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With words infallibly falling short, Pritam mingled realism with a fragmentary style of narration that meshes together social encounters, violent episodes, vivid metaphors, disturbing dreams, memories, intimate self-reflections, and introspection on society.—
JSTOR Daily,
JSTOR Daily,
30 Oct. 2025
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Although all three videos include audio, none of it quite syncs up with what’s on-screen, and ChatGPT’s robotic narration is particularly jarring.—
PC Magazine,
PC Magazine,
25 Oct. 2025
Noun
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This year has also been the deadliest on record for people in immigration detention since the early 2000s, with at least 20 people dying so far.—
NPR,
NPR,
3 Nov. 2025
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Chasing a record 299, South Africa made a sedate start under immense pressure from medium pacer Renuka Singh.—
CNN Money,
CNN Money,
3 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Narrative.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/narrative. Accessed 4 Nov. 2025.
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