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
Her short stories have appeared in numerous journals and anthologies and her nonfiction has appeared in the New York Times Book Review, the Chicago Tribune Sunday Magazine, and elsewhere.
—
Irene Zabytko
may 7, Literary Hub, 7 May 2026
Horror master Stephen King honed his craft early in his career by writing short stories while making a meager income as a teacher, industrial laundry worker, and high school janitor.
—René Ostberg, Encyclopedia Britannica, 7 May 2026
Our subscribers enjoy unlimited access to more than a hundred years’ worth of New Yorker articles, covers, cartoons, short stories, podcasts, and puzzles.
—David Remnick, New Yorker, 4 May 2026
The centerpiece of this movie — and what blew me away in the play, as read by Strong — is the absolutely unhinged monologue Jackie delivers, reading from her short stories.
—Ryan Lattanzio, IndieWire, 1 May 2026
Eugène de Rastignac is a recurring character in La Comédie humaine, a series of interconnected novels and short stories by the French writer Honoré de Balzac that take place in and around post-revolutionary Paris.
—Big Think, 29 Apr. 2026
Those close to Khong marvel at the long half-life of her short stories.
—Mariella Rudi, Los Angeles Times, 13 Apr. 2026
Feeling neglected by Les, Lindy has struck up a retaliatory affair with his colleague Richie (O-T Fagbenle), who mistakenly submits one of her students’ short stories to The New Yorker as her own.
—Alison Herman, Variety, 9 Apr. 2026
Sultan’s latest posthumous collection shifts the focus to the artist’s mostly unpublished writings, which include his musings on teaching and art, unfinished short stories, dream logs, and essays.
—Vanity Fair, 26 Mar. 2026
Irene Zabytko
may 7, Literary Hub, 7 May 2026
Horror master Stephen King honed his craft early in his career by writing short stories while making a meager income as a teacher, industrial laundry worker, and high school janitor.
—René Ostberg, Encyclopedia Britannica, 7 May 2026
Our subscribers enjoy unlimited access to more than a hundred years’ worth of New Yorker articles, covers, cartoons, short stories, podcasts, and puzzles.
—David Remnick, New Yorker, 4 May 2026
The centerpiece of this movie — and what blew me away in the play, as read by Strong — is the absolutely unhinged monologue Jackie delivers, reading from her short stories.
—Ryan Lattanzio, IndieWire, 1 May 2026
Eugène de Rastignac is a recurring character in La Comédie humaine, a series of interconnected novels and short stories by the French writer Honoré de Balzac that take place in and around post-revolutionary Paris.
—Big Think, 29 Apr. 2026
Those close to Khong marvel at the long half-life of her short stories.
—Mariella Rudi, Los Angeles Times, 13 Apr. 2026
Feeling neglected by Les, Lindy has struck up a retaliatory affair with his colleague Richie (O-T Fagbenle), who mistakenly submits one of her students’ short stories to The New Yorker as her own.
—Alison Herman, Variety, 9 Apr. 2026
Sultan’s latest posthumous collection shifts the focus to the artist’s mostly unpublished writings, which include his musings on teaching and art, unfinished short stories, dream logs, and essays.
—Vanity Fair, 26 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for short stories
Noun
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Through their discussions, and the essays and stories that they were assigned to write each week, Heidi came to know her students’ pain.—
Nicholas Dawidoff,
New Yorker,
10 May 2026
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Each day, they are filled with one-dimensional stories of beatings, stabbing and shootings — all sad accounts of a city in decline.—
Voice of the People,
New York Daily News,
10 May 2026
Noun
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Boyson and co-screenwriter Ricky Camilleri overlap tales of two seemingly opposite young guys – wealthy New York teen Balthazar Malone (Jaeden Martell, a casting coup) and loner Texas trailer-park dweller Solomon Jackson (Asa Butterfield, in one of his best performances yet).—
Randy Myers,
Mercury News,
7 May 2026
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But there are amazing tales of survival as well.—
Paul Eisenberg,
Chicago Tribune,
6 May 2026
Noun
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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
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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
Cite this Entry
“Short stories.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/short%20stories. Accessed 12 May. 2026.
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