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Showing results for short story. Search instead for short history.
Synonyms

short story

American  

noun

short stories plural
  1. a piece of prose fiction, usually under 10,000 words.


short story British  

noun

  1. a prose narrative of shorter length than the novel, esp one that concentrates on a single theme

"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

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Derived Forms

Inflected Forms

Nouns

Etymology

Origin of short story

First recorded in 1885–90

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Example Sentences

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Now it’s planning to monetize a more surprising type of media: the short story.

From The Wall Street Journal Jun. 4, 2026

“The story continues as a short story, and maybe those shorts turn into novels, maybe those shorts turn into a serialized vertical series,” said Drucker Mann.

From The Wall Street Journal Jun. 4, 2026

In his short story “Intimacy,” Raymond Carver uses the metaphor of “dead leaves” to describe the unresolved wounds between the narrator and his ex-wife.

From Los Angeles Times Jun. 3, 2026

Catherine Zeta-Jones has joined compatriot Sir Anthony Hopkins in starring in a new film based on a Dylan Thomas short story.

From BBC Apr. 30, 2026

Poe won a short story contest and the prize was publication in a local paper.

From "Book Scavenger" by Jennifer Chambliss Bertman

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