short story

noun

: an invented prose narrative shorter than a novel usually dealing with a few characters and aiming at unity of effect and often concentrating on the creation of mood rather than plot

Examples of short story in a Sentence

her very first short story was accepted for publication in a local journal
Recent Examples on the Web Based on short story by late writer Naguib Mahfouz, The Last Miracle stars popular actor Khaled Kamal (The Blue Elephant, Clash) as a 40-year-old man who receives a phone call from a deceased Sheikh, which begins a spiritual journey with an unexpected conclusion. Melanie Goodfellow, Deadline, 24 Oct. 2024 Since then, the two have chosen over 70 books for their club, selected on a monthly basis, ranging from fiction to memoir to short story collections. Carly Tagen-Dye, People.com, 18 Oct. 2024 After this closure, Dr. Rappaport decided to pursue fiction writing, exploring poetry, short stories and novels. Hilary Tetenabum, USA TODAY, 16 Oct. 2024 Lore Segal, who died on Monday, at the age of ninety-six, published her first short story in The New Yorker in 1961, and her final one two weeks ago, some sixty-three years later. Cressida Leyshon, The New Yorker, 13 Oct. 2024 See all Example Sentences for short story 

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'short story.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1861, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of short story was in 1861

Dictionary Entries Near short story

Cite this Entry

“Short story.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/short%20story. Accessed 5 Nov. 2024.

Kids Definition

short story

noun
: a short work of fiction usually dealing with a few characters and a single event

More from Merriam-Webster on short story

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