stories

plural of story
1
as in tales
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

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2
as in anecdotes
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

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3
4
5
6
as in plots
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

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7
as in situations
position with regard to conditions and circumstances management is trying to figure out what the story is with the accident down in the warehouse

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of stories Its grandeur, natural beauty, and larger-than-life mythos fuel these narratives, with some of the most sacred stories belonging to those who have resided on the land from time immemorial. Arati Menon, Condé Nast Traveler, 7 June 2026 The food and travel personality explores the people, places and hidden stories behind iconic global destinations. Nathan Diller, USA Today, 7 June 2026 TopicsVogue Parties Get the latest fashion stories, style, and tips, handpicked for you, everyday. Sammi Tapper, Vogue, 7 June 2026 This is an edition of The Wonder Reader, a newsletter in which our editors recommend a set of stories to spark your curiosity and fill you with delight. Isabel Fattal, The Atlantic, 6 June 2026 Mothers not only seek expert opinion on parenting but tune into emotionally evocative stories about motherhood that make feelings a source of moral authority. Nina Bandelj, Chicago Tribune, 6 June 2026 These are the top stories from The Kansas City Star. Ian Cummings, Kansas City Star, 6 June 2026 Participants described a strong demand for stories rooted in care, emotional safety, dignity, joy, support, healing, stability, and full humanity. Dominique Fluker, Forbes.com, 30 May 2026 What stories from your own life — or your family history — feel at risk of being forgotten? Erik Pedersen, Oc Register, 30 May 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for stories
Noun
  • The first book was published the same year as Serial debuted, kicking off our burgeoning obsession with true crime and our tendency to romanticize the male perpetrators while often homogenizing their overwhelmingly female victims into cautionary tales.
    Scarlett Harris, Time, 11 June 2026
  • Set in Mexico in the late 1800s, the story centers on Francisca, a gifted writer of dark tales and fantastical characters.
    Carole Horst, Variety, 11 June 2026
Noun
  • The approach is one that Allen is known for, having spent her career drawing on personal anecdotes and relationships to fuel her songwriting.
    Shania Russell, Entertainment Weekly, 10 June 2026
  • Echoing the disorientation of grief, the novel doesn’t take the form of a straightforward story, but rather a mosaic of flashbacks, anecdotes, and reflections.
    Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 9 June 2026
Noun
  • Plaintiff attorneys have built similar tools capable of producing polished demand letters, medical chronologies, and settlement ranges using massive legal datasets.
    Connie Etemadi, USA Today, 27 Jan. 2026
  • The Southern Sinagua people, hardy folk who lived in the area from about 1150 to around 1400, drew them to mark major happenings in their world, keep chronologies of celestial events or map out favorite Verde River hotspots.
    Arizona Republic, AZCentral.com, 23 Dec. 2025
Noun
  • Unsurprisingly, whispers and accusations of nepotism surround Max’s appointment, with Leon Rice having led the program as head coach since 2010, and the father-son connection is undeniably part of why Max returned to Boise State.
    Shaun Goodwin June 8, Idaho Statesman, 8 June 2026
  • The whispers about Elba being a potential Bond began all the way back in 2008, when Daniel Craig said that Barack Obama’s recent election could herald a Black Bond.
    Jason P. Frank, Vulture, 8 June 2026
Noun
  • But then those detectives were deposed and trapped themselves in lies.
    Paul Solotaroff, Rolling Stone, 9 June 2026
  • Prosecutors argued Murdaugh killed his wife and son to distract from his crumbling legal and financial world as years of thefts and lies were closing in on him.
    Sarah Rumpf-Whitten, FOXNews.com, 8 June 2026
Noun
  • Casting child star vocal talents to bring his line drawings to life for the characters surrounding Charlie Brown (and his endless dilemmas of life story plots) wasn’t an easy feat for Schulz, since, after all, children grow up, and their vocals mature.
    Philip Potempa, Chicago Tribune, 3 June 2026
  • Jane’s characters brim with oddball wisdom, and her genre-bending plots are always a delight.
    Tessa Yang, PEOPLE, 2 June 2026
Noun
  • That includes his interior pass rush, too, which he was asked to do a few times in third-and-long situations in 2025 when the Panthers employed their speed rush package.
    Alex Zietlow, Charlotte Observer, 8 June 2026
  • But just as machine learning models generally struggle with things outside the range of their training data, there may be situations where a model’s predictions will fail.
    ArsTechnica, ArsTechnica, 8 June 2026
Noun
  • This pair of novellas is about a middle-aged woman, the heroine’s sister, who comes to Tokyo intent on obtaining breast implants and a protagonist contemplating artificial insemination in a culture that doubts the procedure’s morality.
    Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 21 Apr. 2026
  • House of the Dragon premieres its third season this summer ahead of a fourth and likely final season in 2028, while A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, based on Martin's Tales of Dunk & Egg novellas, is in production on season 2 for release in 2027.
    Nick Romano, Entertainment Weekly, 13 Apr. 2026

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Cite this Entry

“Stories.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/stories. Accessed 13 Jun. 2026.

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