story

1 a work with imaginary characters and events that is shorter and usually less complex than a novel <he's a talented writer, but his quirky stories will never find a wide readership> Synonyms narrative, novelette, novella, short story, tale, yarn Related Words bedtime story; exemplum, fable, parable; anecdote, joke; fairy tale, folktale, legend, myth, romance; account, annals, chronicle, history, record, report

2 a brief account of something interesting that happened especially to one personally <Grandpa is always telling stories about what it was like growing up on a farm> Synonyms anecdote, tale, yarn Related Words episode, event, happening, incident, occurrence; recital, recitation

3 a report of recent events or facts not previously known <a story in the morning paper about plans for a new library> Synonyms advice(s), 411 [slang], gen [chiefly British], info, information, intelligence, item, news, tidings, uncos [chiefly Scottish], wordRelated Words announcement, bulletin, communication, correspondence, dispatch, message, reportage; dope, lowdown, scoop, tidbit (also titbit), tip; gossip, rumor, tale, tattle; feedback; disinformation, propaganda

4 a relating of events usually in the order in which they happened <gave us the whole story of the accident> Synonyms chronicle, chronology, commentary (usually commentaries), history, narration, narrative, record, report, accountRelated Words version; deposition, documentation, testament, testimonial, testimony, witness; annals, blog, diary, journal, log, logbook, memoir; minutes, procès-verbal; anecdote, tale, yarn; epic, saga; gest (or geste), romance; recital, recitation; case history, case study

5 a rumor or report of a personal or sensational nature <stories going around that the old man had died with thousands of dollars hidden under his mattress> Synonyms canard, tale, whisperRelated Words dirt, gossip, scuttlebutt, talebearing, talk, tattle; dirty laundry, dirty linen; defamation, libel, slander; hearsay; fable, fabrication, fairy tale, falsehood, falsity, fib, lie, mendacity, prevarication, untruth, whopper

6 a statement known by its maker to be untrue and made in order to deceive <she tells stories just to get attention, so don't believe that stuff about her father being somebody important> Synonyms fable, fabrication, fairy tale, falsehood, falsity, fib, mendacity, prevarication, lie, tale, taradiddle (or tarradiddle), untruth, whopperRelated Words distortion, exaggeration, half-truth; ambiguity, equivocation, obliquity; defamation, libel, slander; perjury; bluff, fiction, pose, pretense (or pretence); humbug, jive, nonsense; canard, fallacy, misconception, myth; falsification, misinformation, misreport, misrepresentation, misstatement; deceit, deceitfulness, dishonesty, duplicity, fraudulenceNear Antonyms fact, truism, verity; honesty, truthfulness, veracity; authentication, confirmation, substantiation, validation, verificationAntonyms truth

7 the unfolding of events in a dramatic or literary work <the story proceeds at a pace that many readers will find a bit too leisurely> Synonyms plot, action, story lineRelated Words subplot; arc, development; design, outline, plan, scheme; argument, mythos, subject, theme

8 position with regard to conditions and circumstances <management is trying to figure out what the story is with the accident down in the warehouse> Synonyms ball game, deal, footing, picture, posture, scene, status, situationRelated Words rank, standing; place, spot, state; score, status quo