novella
Americannoun
plural
novellas, novelle-
a tale or short story of the type contained in the Decameron of Boccaccio.
-
a fictional prose narrative that is longer and more complex than a short story; a short novel.
noun
-
(formerly) a short narrative tale, esp a popular story having a moral or satirical point, such as those in Boccaccio's Decameron
-
a short novel; novelette
Etymology
Origin of novella
From Italian, dating back to 1900–05; novel 1
Compare meaning
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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.
Kwedar: The first time I read the novella, or any of Denis Johnson’s work, was when you handed it to me and asked me if I thought this was a movie.
From Los Angeles Times
Twenty-five years ago this month, VH1 released an extremely loose TV movie adaptation of Charles Dickens’ 1843 novella, “A Christmas Carol,” aptly titled, “A Diva’s Christmas Carol.”
From Salon
“Marley was dead,” Charles Dickens begins the novella he subtitled “A Ghost Story of Christmas.”
His work took a dramatic turn when he directed “Stand by Me” in 1986, the adaptation of a Stephen King novella.
From Los Angeles Times
Dylan Southern directs from a script based on Max Porter’s novella.
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.
