story

1 of 3

noun (1)

sto·​ry ˈstȯr-ē 

plural stories

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 

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 

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)

• narrative
• novelette
• novella
• short story
• tale
• yarn

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

With enhanced coverage, the public got a chance to become familiar with several personal and collective stories of triumph. —Mark Lasota, Ph.d., Forbes, 20 Oct. 2024

So why was the time right to tell her story through previously unseen photos? —Jeremy Helligar, People.com, 20 Oct. 2024

Verb

The Kentucky Peerless Distilling Co. has a rich and storied history dating back to 1889, when Henry Kraver founded it in Henderson, Kentucky. —Joseph V Micallef, Forbes, 4 Oct. 2024

Alan Jackson has collected a lot of accolades over his long and storied career, including multiple Grammy awards and an induction into the Country Music Hall of Fame inductee. —Melissa Locker, Southern Living, 26 Sep. 2024

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

Phrases Containing story

• a long story
• another story
• another thing/matter/story
• bedtime story
• change one's story
• cock-and-bull story
• cover story
• end of story
• fish story
• ghost story
• half the story
• horror story
• human-interest story
• lead story
• life story
• run a story
• second-story man
• shaggy-dog story
• short story
• sob story
• so the story goes
• story line
• success story
• tall tale/story
• tell a different story
• the same old story
• the story
• the story goes
• the story of someone's life
• true story
• war story
• whole story

Kids Definition

story

1 of 2 noun

sto·​ry ˈstōr-ē 

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 

Joseph 1779–1845 American jurist

Story

2 of 2

biographical name (2)

William Wetmore 1819–1895 son of Joseph Story American sculptor