as in stories
a work with imaginary characters and events that is shorter and usually less complex than a novel
her very first short story was accepted for publication in a local journal
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Recent Examples of short stories
But six short stories is a good tradeoff, and these show the author’s great versatility.
—
Sandra Dallas, Denver Post, 24 Jan. 2026
One of Cash’s interests, carried over from Earth Angel, her 2023 debut book of short stories, is an overflowing index of animal references.
—Niela Orr, Vulture, 13 Jan. 2026
Fittingly, his songs often play like short stories, sketches, and vignettes.
—Stephen Thomas Erlewine, Pitchfork, 13 Jan. 2026
The History of Sound (2024) is a collection of interconnected short stories following two young men in the World War I era who fall in love.
—Katie Hill, PEOPLE, 8 Jan. 2026
Sidney has published short stories in Bodega Magazine and Minerva Rising’s The Keeping Room.
—Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 8 Jan. 2026
The story does not unfold as a typical narrative, but in a series of scenes that feel distinct yet unified, like a collection of short stories.
—John Penner, Los Angeles Times, 8 Jan. 2026
The killer Charles Starkweather, the short stories of Flannery O’Connor, Charles Laughton’s sole cinematic offering, The Night of the Hunter (1955), Terrance Malick’s debut film, Badlands (1973), and Springsteen’s own emotionally fraught childhood each served as inspiration and influence.
—Richard Newby, HollywoodReporter, 29 Oct. 2025
The production has faced unique challenges in adapting Li Kotomi’s source material, which comprises seven interconnected short stories spanning different times and places.
—Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 27 Oct. 2025
Sandra Dallas, Denver Post, 24 Jan. 2026
One of Cash’s interests, carried over from Earth Angel, her 2023 debut book of short stories, is an overflowing index of animal references.
—Niela Orr, Vulture, 13 Jan. 2026
Fittingly, his songs often play like short stories, sketches, and vignettes.
—Stephen Thomas Erlewine, Pitchfork, 13 Jan. 2026
The History of Sound (2024) is a collection of interconnected short stories following two young men in the World War I era who fall in love.
—Katie Hill, PEOPLE, 8 Jan. 2026
Sidney has published short stories in Bodega Magazine and Minerva Rising’s The Keeping Room.
—Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 8 Jan. 2026
The story does not unfold as a typical narrative, but in a series of scenes that feel distinct yet unified, like a collection of short stories.
—John Penner, Los Angeles Times, 8 Jan. 2026
The killer Charles Starkweather, the short stories of Flannery O’Connor, Charles Laughton’s sole cinematic offering, The Night of the Hunter (1955), Terrance Malick’s debut film, Badlands (1973), and Springsteen’s own emotionally fraught childhood each served as inspiration and influence.
—Richard Newby, HollywoodReporter, 29 Oct. 2025
The production has faced unique challenges in adapting Li Kotomi’s source material, which comprises seven interconnected short stories spanning different times and places.
—Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 27 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for short stories
Noun
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Michael Venos, a 46-year-old database administrator from Roxbury, New Jersey, has been collecting stories of Groundhog Day events and their weather predictions for about a decade.—
Mark Scolforo,
Fortune,
31 Jan. 2026
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Her goal is to improve the health of our community through easy-to-understand facts and real people's stories.—
Nicole Villalpando,
Austin American Statesman,
31 Jan. 2026
Noun
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These are human stories first and foremost, tales of tragedy, struggle over adversity, and bittersweet romance.—
Kevin Jacobsen,
Entertainment Weekly,
29 Jan. 2026
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His whimsical and precisely-staged tales play on the artifice of cinema as much as on the heightened emotions of their characters.—
David Morgan,
CBS News,
29 Jan. 2026
Noun
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This anthology duo features interconnected novellas by Quinn, Suzanne Enoch, Karen Hawkins, and Mia Ryan.—
Sara Netzley,
Entertainment Weekly,
25 Jan. 2026
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The Irish actor, 29, leads A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, a new Game of Thrones spinoff series based on a series of novellas by Martin, 77, that follows naïve knight Ser Duncan the Tall (Claffey) and his squire, Egg (Dexter Sol Ansell).—
Julia Moore,
PEOPLE,
21 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Short stories.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/short%20stories. Accessed 2 Feb. 2026.
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