annals

American  

[an-lz] / ˈæn lz /

noun

(used with a plural verb)

1. a record of events, especially a yearly record, usually in chronological order.

   Synonyms:

   history, chronicles

2. historical records generally.

   the annals of war.

   Synonyms:

   history, chronicles

3. a periodical publication containing the formal reports of an organization or learned field.

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annals British  

/ ˈænəlz /

plural noun

1. yearly records of events, generally in chronological order

2. history or records of history in general

3. regular reports of the work of a society, learned body, etc

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Other Word Forms

• annalist noun
• annalistic adjective

Etymology

Origin of annals

1555–65; (< Middle French ) < Latin annālēs ( librī ) literally, yearly (books), plural of annālis continuing for a year, annual, equivalent to ann ( us ) a year + ālis -al ¹

Example Sentences

The annals of art history are rife with stories of rivals—Van Gogh and Gauguin, Picasso and Matisse, and countless other artists—that frame their work as competing aesthetic visions.

From The Wall Street Journal

That left Williams’s throw in the annals of epic plays that were ultimately overshadowed by the game’s final score.

From The Wall Street Journal

Where does this achievement stand in the annals?

From BBC

Her production of “Ragtime,” with its sumptuous score by Stephen Flaherty and Lynn Ahrens, had nary a weak link in a cast of characters among the most expansive in the recent annals of musicals.

From The Wall Street Journal

In the annals of questionable deals in sports, the Doncic trade slots in right next to the Red Sox sending Babe Ruth to the New York Yankees more than a century prior.

From The Wall Street Journal