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story

[stawr-ee, stohr-ee]

noun

a narrative, either true or fictitious, in prose or verse, designed to interest, amuse, or instruct the hearer or reader; tale.

a fictitious tale, shorter and less elaborate than a novel.

such narratives or tales as a branch of literature: song and story.

the plot or succession of incidents of a novel, poem, drama, etc.: The characterizations were good, but the story was weak.

a narration of an incident or a series of events or an example of these that is or may be narrated, as an anecdote, joke, etc.

EXPAND

a narration of the events in the life of a person or the existence of a thing, or such events as a subject for narration: the story of medicine; the story of his life.

a report or account of a matter; statement or allegation: The story goes that he rejected the offer.

news story.

a lie or fabrication: What he said about himself turned out to be a story.

10.

Obsolete. history.

COLLAPSE

verb (used with object)

11.

to ornament with pictured scenes, as from history or legend.

12.

Obsolete. to tell the history or story of.

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Story is one of our favorite verbs.

So is subtilize. Does it mean:

to swindle, cheat, hoodwink, or hoax.

to introduce subtleties into or argue subtly about.

LEARN MORE FUN, UNUSUAL VERBS WITH WORD DYNAMO...

Origin:
1175–1225; Middle English storie < Anglo-French estorie < Latin historia history

Related forms

sto·ry·less, adjective

Synonyms
1. legend, fable, romance; anecdote, record, history, chronicle. 5. recital. 7. description.

Example Sentences

Most high-school students have a story about a sibling or a friend who felt ignored at the back of a lecture hall.

Lee's tactics nonetheless worked: the mining bosses' side of the story was given a fairer hearing henceforth.

Help your children use this understanding to tell a meaningful story about the community's migration story.

EXPAND

Most high-school students have a story about a sibling or a friend who felt ignored at the back of a lecture hall.

Lee's tactics nonetheless worked: the mining bosses' side of the story was given a fairer hearing henceforth.

Help your children use this understanding to tell a meaningful story about the community's migration story.

The story does not stay the same despite a superficial structural similarity, and especially the interpretation changes.

The young lady sitting by their side-an older sister, or is it cousin…-wants to cheer them up with a story.

The letter should explain and outline the proposed story idea, and suggest an appropriate month or season.

Hints about the escapees had leaked, and several journalists were on the verge of piecing together the story.

To make one's own reflection in a mirror the subject of a story.

Australia is rich, tranquil and mostly overlooked, yet it has a story to tell.

Four hundred years later, historians are piecing together the real story.

Our story starts in the hypothalamus, an ancient region of the brain, conserved throughout mammalian evolution.

Understanding that will help them tell us the complete story of our early ancestors and how they survived.

The fairy castle decor provides a magical setting for story times featuring costumed characters.

To be sure, the figures do not tell the whole story.

The story was written in easy to understand language, so that it would appeal to a wide range of audiences.

But the story of human development is one of becoming better at coping with them.

She was not consistent and changed her story several times.

He made friends, although it was hard to convince people that his impossible story was true.

Research has found that giving away the best part of a story at the beginning actually makes it more enjoyable.

The true story of a lonely orca leaps from printed page to silver screen, with a boost from new technology.

Wired tells the story of the strangest heist ever, starting when a man walked into a bank with a bomb locked around his neck.

Obviously, there is more to the story than you are reporting.

Ask our experts a question, share a link, or contribute your story ideas.

Uncover the bittersweet story of this ancient treat.

But there is a far more compelling story about how this field, known as synthetic.

His fellow authors were admonished to inform, to enchant and to tell a story.

Grizzle didn't respond to phone calls and e-mails asking for comment for this story.

Each story type and each story were rated higher when presented with the spoiler paragraph.

If anything, the story is an indirect argument for some sort of legalization or.

COLLAPSE

Dictionary.com Unabridged

noun, plural -ries.

a complete horizontal section of a building, having one continuous or practically continuous floor.

the set of rooms on the same floor or level of a building.

any major horizontal architectural division, as of a façade or the wall of a nave.

a layer.

Also, especially British, storey.

Origin:
1350–1400; Middle English storie < Anglo-Latin historia picture decorating a building, a part of the building so decorated, hence floor, story < Latin historia history

noun

Joseph, 1779–1845, U.S. jurist.

William Wet·more

[wet-mawr, -mohr] , 1819–95, U.S. sculptor and poet.

Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
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Link To story

Collins

World English Dictionary

storey or (US) story (ˈstɔːrɪ)

—n , pl -reys, -ries
1.	a floor or level of a building
2.	a set of rooms on one level

[C14: from Anglo-Latin historia, picture, from Latin: narrative, probably arising from the pictures on medieval windows]

story or (US) story

—n

[C14: from Anglo-Latin historia, picture, from Latin: narrative, probably arising from the pictures on medieval windows]

story¹ (ˈstɔːrɪ)

—n , pl -ries
1.	a narration of a chain of events told or written in prose or verse
2.	Also called: short story a piece of fiction, briefer and usually less detailed than a novel
3.	Also called: story line the plot of a book, film, etc
4.	an event that could be the subject of a narrative
5.	a report or statement on a matter or event
6.	the event or material for such a report
7.	informal a lie, fib, or untruth
8.	cut a long story short, make a long story short to leave out details in a narration
9.	informal the same old story the familiar or regular course of events
10.	the story goes it is commonly said or believed

—vb , -ries, -ries, -rying, -ried
11.	to decorate (a pot, wall, etc) with scenes from history or legends

[C13: from Anglo-French estorie, from Latin historia; see history]

story² (ˈstɔːrɪ)

—n , pl -ries
	another spelling (esp US) of storey

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline

Word Origin & History

story

"account of some happening," early 13c., "narrative of important events or celebrated persons of the past," from O.Fr. estorie, from L.L. storia and L. historia "history, account, tale, story" (see history). Meaning "recital of true events" first recorded late 14c.; sense

EXPAND

of "narrative of fictitious events meant to entertain" is from c.1500. Not differentiated from history till 1500s. As a euphemism for "a lie" it dates from 1690s. Meaning "newspaper article" is from 1892. Story-teller is from 1709. Story-line first attested 1941. That's another story "that requires different treatment" is attested from 1818. Story of my life "sad truth" first recorded 1938.

story

"floor of a building," c.1400, from Anglo-L. historia "floor of a building" (c.1200), also "picture," from L. historia (see history). Perhaps so called because the fronts of buildings in the Middle Ages often were decorated with rows of painted windows.

COLLAPSE

American Heritage

Idioms & Phrases

story

In addition to the idiom beginning with story, also see cock and bull story; cover story; fish story; hard-luck story; make a long story short; old story; same old story; shaggy dog story; sob story; upper story.