1
a
: something invented by the imagination or feigned
specifically
: an invented story
… I'd found out that the story of the ailing son was pure fiction. —
Andrew A. Rooney
Andrew A. Rooney
b
: fictitious literature (such as novels or short stories)
was renowned as a writer of fiction
c
: a work of fiction
2
a
: an assumption of a possibility as a fact irrespective of the question of its truth
a legal fiction
b
: a useful illusion or pretense
it was only a fiction of independence his mother gave him; he was almost totally under her power—G. A. Wagner
G. A. Wagner3
: the action of feigning or of creating with the imagination
She engaged in fiction to escape painful realities.
Examples of fiction in a Sentence
She believes the fiction that crime rates are up.
most stories about famous outlaws of the Old West are fictions that have little or nothing to do with fact
Recent Examples on the Web
Because his reality emerges from fiction, Musk is untethered from any sense of earthly constraints.
—Franklin Foer, The Atlantic, 28 July 2025
Stablecoins versus traditional cross-border payments: Separating truth from fiction
For the last few years, the narrative from many in the stablecoin space has been that the technology is inherently cheaper and faster than established cross-border payments solutions.
—Daniel Webber, Forbes.com, 28 July 2025
Despite having two nonfiction books and decades of journalism to my name, Pringle pointed me to the far riskier path of literary fiction.
—Dan Morrison, USA Today, 26 July 2025
Which fiction piece, about a man who decides to pool-hop his way home from a friend’s house, was made into a movie from 1968?
—Helen Shaw, New Yorker, 25 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for fiction
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Franklin Foer, The Atlantic, 28 July 2025
Stablecoins versus traditional cross-border payments: Separating truth from fiction
For the last few years, the narrative from many in the stablecoin space has been that the technology is inherently cheaper and faster than established cross-border payments solutions.
—Daniel Webber, Forbes.com, 28 July 2025
Despite having two nonfiction books and decades of journalism to my name, Pringle pointed me to the far riskier path of literary fiction.
—Dan Morrison, USA Today, 26 July 2025
Which fiction piece, about a man who decides to pool-hop his way home from a friend’s house, was made into a movie from 1968?
—Helen Shaw, New Yorker, 25 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for fiction
Cite this Entry
“Fiction.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/fiction. Accessed 2 Aug. 2025.
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