anecdotal

American  

[an-ik-doht-l] / ˌæn ɪkˈdoʊt l /

adjective

1. pertaining to, resembling, or containing anecdotes.

   an anecdotal history of jazz.

2. Fine Arts. (of the treatment of subject matter in representational art) pertaining to the relationship of figures or to the arrangement of elements in a scene so as to emphasize the story content of a subject.

3. based on personal observation, case study reports, or random investigations rather than systematic scientific evaluation.

   anecdotal evidence.

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anecdotal British  

/ ˌænɛkˈdəʊtəl /

adjective

1. containing or consisting exclusively of anecdotes rather than connected discourse or research conducted under controlled conditions

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Usage

What does anecdotal mean? Anecdotal describes something that is related to a short account of an incident from a particular perspective. Something that is anecdotal is a story told through anecdotes. An anecdote is a short recounting of an event from someone’s point of view, normally in a pleasant or humorous manner. For example, anecdotal history is a historical account that is laid out through the perspectives of the people involved. Anecdotal also describes something, such as research, that is based on personal observation and experience. Anecdotal evidence can be gathered by interviews, surveys, and other methods that allow people to share their experiences with the researcher.  In comparison, scientific evidence is gathered by comparing a dependent and independent variable in a controlled environment. Both types of evidence are important, but anecdotal evidence can’t prove something the way repeated testing and consistent results can. Example: My science paper relied on anecdotal evidence instead of experimentation, so the teacher gave me a low grade.

Other Word Forms

• anecdotalism
  noun
• anecdotally
  adverb
• unanecdotal
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of anecdotal

First recorded in 1830–40; anecdote + -al ¹

Explanation

Something anecdotal has to do with anecdotes — little stories. Anecdotal evidence is based on hearsay rather than hard facts. People like to share stories about things that happened to them, or that they heard about, to make a point. That kind of talk is anecdotal: based on small, personal accounts. Anecdotal stories are helpful when you’re trying to give an example of something, but there's a downside to anecdotal information: since it’s not based on facts, you never know if you can totally trust it. So it's best to go beyond the anecdotal and get more solid information.

Example Sentences

Only anecdotal evidence which is far from conclusive.

From BBC • May 14, 2026

A remarkable dividend of the new approaches to crime and welfare, one with only anecdotal rather than social-science evidence, was a dramatic thaw in race relations, as fear and resentment abated.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 8, 2026

Early anecdotal evidence suggests that participating in No Kings events is motivating the women organizing them to think more about what they can do to support their country’s democracy.

From Salon • Mar. 28, 2026

There’s also scattered evidence that young workers just starting out in their careers are losing out to AI, but so far the reports are mostly anecdotal.

From MarketWatch • Mar. 1, 2026

While the broader concerns about attention span are widespread among scholars, the evidence can be indirect, some of it anecdotal.

From "A Deadly Wandering: A Mystery, a Landmark Investigation, and the Astonishing Science of Attention in the Digital Age" by Matt Richtel

Related Words

• unreliable
• unscientific