as in tale
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 story
Orange led a short story workshop last weekend at San Francisco’s Mechanics’ Institute in exchange for funding to support Native elders.
—
Kate Bradshaw, Mercury News, 11 Oct. 2025
His dad was also a copywriter and a late starter, waking up at dawn to write Western short stories before work because that's what magazines were willing to buy.
—Neal Rubin, Freep.com, 10 Oct. 2025
Researchers in Montreal played short stories for 39 of their subjects in French, German, and Hebrew (the rest were the control group), until the babies were born.
—Elisabeth Sherman, Parents, 8 Oct. 2025
Somers’s second novel, which began as a short story in the magazine Joyland, takes the long view on a crush between new parents Cora and Sam, who live in a small city upstate.
—Jasmine Vojdani, Vulture, 7 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for short story
Kate Bradshaw, Mercury News, 11 Oct. 2025
His dad was also a copywriter and a late starter, waking up at dawn to write Western short stories before work because that's what magazines were willing to buy.
—Neal Rubin, Freep.com, 10 Oct. 2025
Researchers in Montreal played short stories for 39 of their subjects in French, German, and Hebrew (the rest were the control group), until the babies were born.
—Elisabeth Sherman, Parents, 8 Oct. 2025
Somers’s second novel, which began as a short story in the magazine Joyland, takes the long view on a crush between new parents Cora and Sam, who live in a small city upstate.
—Jasmine Vojdani, Vulture, 7 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for short story
Recent Examples of Synonyms for short story
Noun
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This is the fourth Hammer Frankenstein film but only the third directed by Terence Fisher – after nine years away from the Baron’s experiments, Fisher returns for a gut-punching tale of undesirable outsiders, execution anxiety, and gender-bent possession.—
Rory Doherty,
Vulture,
20 Oct. 2025
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Lane Neely, a park interpreter for Caddo Lake State Park, told USA TODAY that he's heard tales about a lake creature and a ghostly woman.—
Phaedra Trethan,
USA Today,
20 Oct. 2025
Noun
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Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer.—
Meredith Kile,
PEOPLE,
21 Oct. 2025
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This would provide 20 two-story units and eight one-story, one-bedroom units.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
21 Oct. 2025
Noun
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In fact, the term Kafkaesque — which describes a bizarre, nightmarish situation where alienation and a lack of control permeate — is perhaps best applied to this novella.—
Big Think,
Big Think,
14 Oct. 2025
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It’s based on a novella by Denis Johnson that first appeared in The Paris Review in 2002, and stars Joel Edgerton as fictional character Robert Grainier, one of the men and women who helped fire up America and ushered it into the industrial age.—
Baz Bamigboye,
Deadline,
14 Oct. 2025
Noun
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Matilda had asked, politely interrupting the beginning of what promised to be a windy narrative about the two sorry sons.—
Lizz Schumer,
PEOPLE,
17 Oct. 2025
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Well aware of the narrative surrounding the bullpen this October, the Los Angeles Dodgers turned to a slew of relievers in hopes of changing the discourse.—
Fabian Ardaya,
New York Times,
17 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Short story.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/short%20story. Accessed 22 Oct. 2025.
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