short story

noun

Definition of short storynext
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

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

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 short story Atlanta author Lydia Mathis’ literary debut features candid, revealing short stories. — Suzanne Van Atten, AJC.com, 20 Sep. 2026 Bowing at least year’s Toronto, a home-run from Isabel Coixet, Adapting a short story collection by Italy’s Michela Murgia, who died of cancer at 51. — Callum McLennan, Variety, 18 Sep. 2026 The original lyrical idea for this came from me reading Damon Runyon books, short stories based in the ‘30s and ‘40s. — Craig Rosen, Los Angeles Times, 16 Sep. 2026 Ron Perlman, Elizabeth McGovern, Wes Studi and Dane DiLiegro round out the cast for the project that began its life as a viral short story. — Ryan Gajewski, HollywoodReporter, 10 Sep. 2026 See All Example Sentences for short story
Recent Examples of Synonyms for short story
  1. tale
  2. story
  3. novella
  4. narrative
Noun
  • Like Primetime, this survival tale about a Special Forces veteran and his combat dog who are stranded in the Alaskan wilderness, sells itself upon viewing.
    — Anthony D'Alessandro, Deadline, 25 Sep. 2026
  • Either way, The Ministry is a perfectly decent action movie based on the real-life tale of a group of World War II commandos on a covert submarine-sabotage mission.
    — K. Thor Jensen, PC Magazine, 25 Sep. 2026
Definition of tale
Noun
  • There was a period where airspace was closed in the Gulf after the Iran conflict began, and then questions about whether the region’s growth story would be interrupted.
    — Andrew Edgecliffe-Johnson, semafor.com, 2 Oct. 2026
  • In the end, creation stories feels a bit like an internal pep talk for which an audience didn’t necessarily need to be present.
    — Sara Holdren, Vulture, 2 Oct. 2026
Definition of story
Noun
  • As for the sitting president, he’s named just once, in the opening line of the titular novella.
    — Ryan Chapman, Literary Hub, 30 Sep. 2026
  • The company is working on a feature adaptation of Pulitzer Prize finalist Torrey Peters’ novella Stag Dance and a feature romantic comedy from Carly Usdin and Brittani Nichols featuring WNBA players Gabby Williams, Theresa Plaisance, and Syd Colson.
    — Peter White, Deadline, 8 Sep. 2026
Definition of novella
Noun
  • This keeps the performance informal and keeps the narrative — a staggering odyssey of injustices, abuses, travel adventures, extraordinary coincidences, losses, reunions, reflections and self-analysis — from becoming sensationalized.
    — Christopher Arnott, Hartford Courant, 2 Oct. 2026
  • Nakajima says the team leaves the fun of the original, its narrative structure and the feeling audiences take home untouched.
    — Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 1 Oct. 2026
Definition of narrative

Browse Nearby Words

short stories
short story
short subject
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Short story.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/short%20story. Accessed 3 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation

More from Merriam-Webster on short story

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about short story

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of tittle

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

More Commonly Mispronounced Words

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

7 Great Ways to Say 'Great'

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

The Words of the Week - Oct. 2

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

7 Great Ways to Say 'Great'

The Longest Long Words List
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
name tags
Words Named After People Quiz Find out who’s behind "leotard," "morphine," an...
See All