horror story

noun

: an account of an unsettling or unfortunate occurrence
heard horror stories about recent layoffs
also : something unsettling or unfortunate
his childhood was a horror story

Examples of horror story in a Sentence

We've all heard horror stories about airlines losing people's luggage. Her childhood was a horror story.
Recent Examples on the Web
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.
This film, made in the aftermath of Mahsa Amini’s 2022 death in police custody after she was arrested for her refusal to wear a hijab, is a thriller, a family drama, and a horror story. Stephanie Zacharek, TIME, 4 Dec. 2024 Social media posts detail horror stories related to airlines' treatment of unaccompanied minors. Michael Salerno, The Arizona Republic, 13 Nov. 2024 Minecraft has always been a blocky canvas for the human imagination; the game has inspired countless works of fiction, and many horror stories—now, AI has generated a haunted version of the game. Dani Di Placido, Forbes, 3 Nov. 2024 But most of the horror stories setting a foreboding and ominous tone are anecdotal episodes — not evidence of any sort of widespread migrant crime wave. Josephine Stratman, New York Daily News, 1 Nov. 2024 See all Example Sentences for horror story 

Word History

First Known Use

1937, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of horror story was in 1937

Dictionary Entries Near horror story

Cite this Entry

“Horror story.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/horror%20story. Accessed 15 Dec. 2024.

More from Merriam-Webster on horror 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!