anecdote
Americannoun
plural
anecdotes, anecdota-
a short account of a particular incident or event, especially of an interesting or amusing nature.
-
a short, obscure historical or biographical account.
noun
Other Word Forms
- anecdotalist noun
- anecdotic adjective
Etymology
Origin of anecdote
First recorded in 1670–80; from New Latin anecdota or French anecdotes, from Late Greek, Greek anékdota “things unpublished” (referring particularly to Procopius's unpublished memoirs of Justinian and Theodora), neuter plural of anékdotos, equivalent to an- an- 1 + ékdotos “given out,” adjective derivative of ekdidónai “to give out, publish” ( ek- ec- + didónai “to give”)
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
But it presented me with a unique research problem, for no anecdote from PARC’s rich history is burdened by so much contradictory testimony.
From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 24, 2026
Gabriel Sherman: I guess the darkest anecdote, or one of, I should say, is the way Rupert manipulated his children to turn on each other to advance his own agenda and aims.
From Slate • Mar. 21, 2026
An interlacing of memoir and anecdote, it begins with the author as a young boy, growing up in Brooklyn, N.Y., left agog by the Bronx Zoo’s immersive Amazon exhibit.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 29, 2026
A woman whose arm tattoo ended up on her tongue as part of reconstructive surgery during cancer treatment says the story makes a "good dating anecdote".
From BBC • Dec. 6, 2025
Penelope went on in the same jovial spirit, for if one unpleasant episode could be made into an amusing anecdote, why not all of them?
From "The Hidden Gallery" by Maryrose Wood
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
