story

1 of 3

noun (1)

sto·​ry ˈstȯr-ē How to pronounce story (audio)
plural stories
Synonyms of storynext
1
a
: an account of incidents or events
b
: a statement regarding the facts pertinent to a situation in question
c
: anecdote
especially : an amusing one
2
a
: a fictional narrative shorter than a novel
specifically : short story
b
: the intrigue or plot of a narrative or dramatic work
3
: a widely circulated rumor
4
: lie, falsehood
5
: legend, romance
6
: a news article or broadcast
7
: matter, situation
8
archaic
a
: history sense 1
b
: history sense 3
storylike
ˈstȯr-ē-ˌlīk How to pronounce story (audio)
adjective
or story-like
storylike narratives

story

2 of 3

verb

storied; storying

transitive verb

1
: to adorn with a story or a scene from history
2
archaic : to narrate or describe in story

story

3 of 3

noun (2)

ˈstȯr-ē How to pronounce story (audio)
variants or less commonly storey
plural stories also storeys
1
a
: the space in a building between two adjacent floor levels or between a floor and the roof
b
: a set of rooms in such a space
c
: a unit of measure equal to the height of the story of a building
one story high
2
: a horizontal division of a building's exterior not necessarily corresponding exactly with the stories within

Synonyms

Noun (1)

See all Synonyms & Antonyms in Thesaurus 

Examples of story in a Sentence

Noun (1) he's a talented writer, but his quirky stories will never find a wide readership Grandpa is always telling stories about what it was like growing up on a farm a story in the morning paper about plans for a new library gave us the whole story of the accident stories going around that the old man had died with thousands of dollars hidden under his mattress she tells stories just to get attention, so don't believe that stuff about her father being somebody important the story proceeds at a pace that many readers will find a bit too leisurely management is trying to figure out what the story is with the accident down in the warehouse
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
This story was originally published May 22, 2024, 9:48 PM. —Clara-Sophia Daly, Miami Herald, 23 May 2024 This story was originally published May 23, 2024, 11:22 AM. —Hanh Truong, Sacramento Bee, 23 May 2024 See all Example Sentences for story 

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word '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

Etymology

Noun (1)

Middle English storie, from Anglo-French estoire, estorie, from Latin historia — more at history

Noun (2)

Middle English storie, from Medieval Latin historia narrative, illustration, story of a building, from Latin, history, tale; probably from narrative friezes on the window level of medieval buildings

First Known Use

Noun (1)

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 8a

Verb

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Noun (2)

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Time Traveler
The first known use of story was in the 13th century

Phrases Containing story

Dictionary Entries Near story

Stornoway

story

Story

See More Nearby Entries 

Cite this Entry

“Story.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/story. Accessed 29 May. 2024.

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Kids Definition

story

1 of 2 noun
sto·​ry ˈstōr-ē How to pronounce story (audio)
ˈstȯr-
plural stories
1
a
: an account of incidents or events
b
: anecdote
2
a
: a fictional tale shorter than a novel
especially : short story
b
: the main tale of a written work
3
: a widely told rumor
4
: fib, lie, falsehood
5
: a news article or broadcast

story

2 of 2 noun
variants also storey
ˈstōr-ē,
ˈstȯr-
plural stories also storeys
: a set of rooms or an area making up one floor level of a building
Etymology

Noun

Middle English storie "tale," from early French estoire, estorie (same meaning), from Latin historia "tale, history"

Noun

Middle English storie, from Latin historia "tale, illustration, story of a building," from earlier Latin, "tale, history"; probably so called from the use of narrative paintings on the window levels of medieval buildings

Biographical Definition

Story 1 of 2

biographical name (1)

Sto·​ry ˈstȯr-ē How to pronounce Story (audio)
Joseph 1779–1845 American jurist

Story

2 of 2

biographical name (2)

William Wetmore 1819–1895 son of Joseph Story American sculptor

More from Merriam-Webster on story

Nglish: Translation of story for Spanish Speakers

Britannica English: Translation of story for Arabic Speakers

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