Dictionary.com
Thesaurus.com
Showing results for dime novel. Search instead for river+novel.
Synonyms

dime novel

American  

noun

  1. a cheap melodramatic or sensational novel, usually in paperback and selling for ten cents, especially such an adventure novel popular c1850 to c1920.


dime novel British  

noun

  1. Also called (esp Brit): penny-dreadful.  (formerly) a cheap melodramatic novel, usually in paperback

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of dime novel

An Americanism dating back to 1860–65

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.

For fun: A late-19th-century dime novel offers advice on when not to marry.

From Slate • Jul. 15, 2016

Yet Lansdale has pulled out all the stops to deliver a rip-roaring tale completely in keeping with dime novel traditions and the cinematic hyperbole of "Blazing Saddles" or "Django Unchained."

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 26, 2015

One of Thompson's critics has called him without disparagement "a dime novel Dostoevsky" and there are elements of traditional tragedy in Lou's story of small-town desperation and madness.

From The Guardian • Jun. 5, 2010

The first dime novel that really cost a dime was published by Beadle in 1860.

From Time Magazine Archive

One was deep in the blood-curdling pages of a dime novel, straining his eyes in the fitful light of the lamps.

From The Night Riders A Romance of Early Montana by Cullum, Ridgwell

Vocabulary.com logo
by dictionary.com

Look it up. Learn it forever.

Remember "dime novel" for good with VocabTrainer. Expand your vocabulary effortlessly with personalized learning tools that adapt to your goals.

Take me to Vocabulary.com