story

1
[ stawr-ee, stohr-ee ]
See synonyms for story on Thesaurus.com
noun,plural sto·ries.
  1. a narrative, either true or fictitious, in prose or verse, designed to interest, amuse, or instruct the hearer or reader; tale.

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

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

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

  3. 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.

  4. 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.

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

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

  7. Obsolete. history.

verb (used with object),sto·ried, sto·ry·ing.
  1. to ornament with pictured scenes, as from history or legend.

  2. Obsolete. to tell the history or story of.

Origin of story

1
First recorded in 1200–50; Middle English stori(e), store, “(written or oral) narrative; history,” from Anglo-French (e)storie (Old French estoire), from Latin historia history

Other words for story

Other words from story

  • sto·ry·less, adjective

Words Nearby story

Other definitions for story (2 of 3)

story2
[ stawr-ee, stohr-ee ]

noun,plural sto·ries.
  1. a complete horizontal section of a building, having one continuous or practically continuous floor.

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

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

  2. a layer.

Origin of story

2
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English stori(e), from Anglo-Latin (hi)storia architetcure term for a picture decorating a building, a part of the building so decorated, hence floor, story, from Latin historia history
  • Also especially British, sto·rey .

Other definitions for Story (3 of 3)

Story
[ stawr-ee, stohr-ee ]

noun
  1. Joseph, 1779–1845, U.S. jurist.

  2. William Wet·more [wet-mawr, -mohr], /ˈwɛtˌmɔr, -ˌmoʊr/, 1819–95, U.S. sculptor and poet.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use story in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for story (1 of 2)

story1

/ (ˈstɔːrɪ) /


nounplural -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

  1. Also called: story line the plot of a book, film, etc

  2. an event that could be the subject of a narrative

  3. a report or statement on a matter or event

  4. the event or material for such a report

  5. informal a lie, fib, or untruth

  6. cut a long story short or make a long story short to leave out details in a narration

  7. the same old story informal the familiar or regular course of events

  8. the story goes it is commonly said or believed

verb-ries, -rying or -ried (tr)
  1. to decorate (a pot, wall, etc) with scenes from history or legends

Origin of story

1
C13: from Anglo-French estorie, from Latin historia; see history

British Dictionary definitions for story (2 of 2)

story2

/ (ˈstɔːrɪ) /


nounplural -ries
  1. another spelling (esp US) of storey

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

Other Idioms and Phrases with story

story

In addition to the idiom beginning with story

  • story of my life, the

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

The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.