nonfiction

American  

[non-fik-shuhn] / nɒnˈfɪk ʃən /

noun

1. the branch of literature comprising works of narrative prose dealing with or offering opinions or conjectures upon facts and reality, including biography, history, and the essay (fiction and poetry anddrama ).

2. works of this class.

   She had read all of his novels but none of his nonfiction.

3. (especially in cataloging books, as in a library or bookstore) all writing or books not fiction, poetry, or drama, including nonfictive narrative prose and reference works; the broadest category of written works.

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nonfiction British  

/ ˌnɒnˈfɪkʃən /

noun

1. writing dealing with facts and events rather than imaginative narration

2. (modifier) relating to or denoting nonfiction

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Other Word Forms

• nonfictional adjective
• nonfictionally adverb

Etymology

Origin of nonfiction

First recorded in 1905–10; non- + fiction

Example Sentences

In nonfiction, a soulful look at how we interact with the natural world leads to an equally soulful look at why the American West’s human diversity enriches us all.

From Los Angeles Times

I know when I’m writing nonfiction, because my desk is full of books and documents and everything on earth.

From Los Angeles Times

Horning said he grew up in a strict Seventh-day Adventist household in Northern California, forbidden from reading anything other than the Bible and approved nonfiction.

From The Wall Street Journal

Jonah would be in the nonfiction section, near the conference room.

From Literature

His final film earned universal critical acclaim, and was recognized as the best nonfiction film of 2023 by the New York Film Critics Circle, the Los Angeles Film Critics Assn.

From Los Angeles Times