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 Yes, like, language is so important to a short story. Hazlitt, 20 Mar. 2024 The International Booker Prize — which honors the best novels and short story collections in translation published in the U.K. and/or Ireland every year — announced its 2024 longlist. Zan Romanoff, Los Angeles Times, 16 Mar. 2024 To subscribe to the Free Press at discount rates and read lots of short stories plus some long ones, click here. Detroit Free Press, 10 Mar. 2024 Authors like Rebecca Makkai and C Pam Zhang are among the nominees for the prestigious award, which is the largest English-language literary prize for non-binary and women authors of novels, short story collections and graphic novels, per a statement shared with PEOPLE. Carly Tagen-Dye, Peoplemag, 8 Mar. 2024 Each podcast episode is a short story that follows seven young and adventurous Black characters through their everyday lives. Meimei Fox, Forbes, 27 Feb. 2024 In person, the image is spellbinding and compelling, a short story unto itself. Tom Teicholz, Forbes, 27 Feb. 2024 Writing short stories, for me, is all about zooming in on something. Dennis Zhou, The New Yorker, 26 Feb. 2024 The seventh annual contest, sponsored by the Friends of San Diego Central Library, highlights local short story authors and is part of the Local Author Program. Linda McIntosh, San Diego Union-Tribune, 23 Feb. 2024

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 28 Mar. 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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