dime novel
noun
: a usually paperback melodramatic novel
especially
: one popular in the U.S. from about the mid-19th century to the early 20th often featuring a Western theme
Examples of dime novel in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Read More: Fans React to Beyoncé's New Album Cowboy Carter
Once seen as ruffians and pushed to the outskirts of Victorian society, cowboys were reinvented as rugged cultural heroes in the American consciousness in the early 20th century through dime novels, rodeos, movies, and more.
—
TIME, 12 Apr. 2024
Newspapers breathlessly covered the thefts, as did Western dime novels and traveling Wild West shows.
—Malia Wollan, New York Times, 23 Jan. 2024
The brothel girls sent Dorothy on errands and paid her with their dime novels.
—cleveland, 23 Feb. 2020
Though many prominent opinion-havers rage about the imminent death of the English language at the hands of emoji-wielding teenagers, the Internet has done no more harm to English than television, radio, or dime novels.
—Mara Katz, Ars Technica, 2 Nov. 2019
But the frontier was closed, and its memory was already being turned into myth in dime novels, westerns, and Wild West shows.
—David Treuer, Harper's magazine, 10 Jan. 2019
Westerns have been selling variations on this sort of story since the silent days (and in dime novels before that).
—Michael Phillips, Detroit Free Press, 18 May 2018
TIME, 12 Apr. 2024
Newspapers breathlessly covered the thefts, as did Western dime novels and traveling Wild West shows.
—Malia Wollan, New York Times, 23 Jan. 2024
The brothel girls sent Dorothy on errands and paid her with their dime novels.
—cleveland, 23 Feb. 2020
Though many prominent opinion-havers rage about the imminent death of the English language at the hands of emoji-wielding teenagers, the Internet has done no more harm to English than television, radio, or dime novels.
—Mara Katz, Ars Technica, 2 Nov. 2019
But the frontier was closed, and its memory was already being turned into myth in dime novels, westerns, and Wild West shows.
—David Treuer, Harper's magazine, 10 Jan. 2019
Westerns have been selling variations on this sort of story since the silent days (and in dime novels before that).
—Michael Phillips, Detroit Free Press, 18 May 2018
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'dime novel.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near dime novel
Cite this Entry
“Dime novel.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/dime%20novel. Accessed 18 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share