narrate

verb

nar·​rate ˈner-ˌāt 

ˈna-ˌrat, 

na-ˈrāt 

narrated; narrating

transitive verb

: to tell (a story) in detail

The children enjoyed the lively manner with which she narrated her life's story.

also : to provide spoken commentary for (something, such as a movie or television show)

The documentary is narrated by a famous actor.

narrator

ˈner-ˌā-tər 

ˈna-ˌrā-, 

na-ˈrā-, 

nə-;

ˈner-ə-, 

ˈna-rə-

noun

Synonyms of narrate

• describe
• tell
• recount
• chronicle
• relate

Examples of narrate in a Sentence

The author narrates her story in great detail.

a documentary narrated by a famous actor

Recent Examples on the Web

One of the biggest challenges in narrating Mirikitani’s career is that the majority of his collages are untitled and his works are difficult to date because of his displacement and transpacific migration. —Tessa Solomon, ARTnews.com, 24 Apr. 2026

After his challenge attempt, Probst jumped right back into hosting duties, narrating as Joe earned the immunity necklace. —Stephanie Petit, PEOPLE, 23 Apr. 2026

Galvin, who's in charge of the state's elections, narrates the 30 second commercials promoted by his office to celebrate America's 250th anniversary. —David Wade, CBS News, 23 Apr. 2026

His work as a composer included From the Diary of Anne Frank, a UNICEF commission that premiered in 1991 and was narrated by Audrey Hepburn. —Mike Barnes, HollywoodReporter, 23 Apr. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Latin narratus, past participle of narrare, from Latin gnarus knowing; akin to Latin gnoscere, noscere to know — more at know

First Known Use

1656, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for narrate

• abate
• airfreight
• await
• baseplate
• berate
• birthdate
• birthrate
• bookplate
• borate
• breastplate
• bromate
• casemate

Kids Definition

narrate

verb

nar·​rate ˈna(ə)r-ˌāt  na-ˈrāt 

narrated; narrating

: relate sense 1, tell

narrate a story

narrator

ˈna(ə)r-ˌāt-ər 

na-ˈrāt-, 

nə-;

ˈnar-ət-

noun