fiction

noun

ˈfik-shən How to pronounce fiction (audio)
Definition of fictionnext
as in fantasy
something that is the product of the imagination most stories about famous outlaws of the Old West are fictions that have little or nothing to do with fact

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of fiction This interview was featured in the Books & Fiction newsletter, which delivers the stories behind the stories, along with our latest fiction. — Deborah Treisman, New Yorker, 28 June 2026 The world drew heavily from the paintings of fantasy illustrator Frank Frazetta, who depicted scenes of barbarians and beasts in conflict, of pulp fiction heroes, femme fatales, and fierce warrior women. — Steve Appleford, SPIN, 29 June 2026 Crisis and renewal are strictly a matter of marketing now, a fiction that permanently assigns the Democrats the role of technocrats managing national decline while Republicans get to stand for muscular optimism and economic expansion. — Ann Manov, Harpers Magazine, 30 June 2026 In 1987 crime fiction author James Ellroy published The Black Dahlia, a fictionalization of Short’s murder that focused on two police officers obsessed with solving the case. — Encyclopedia Britannica, 29 June 2026 See All Example Sentences for fiction
Recent Examples of Synonyms for fiction
  1. fantasy
  2. tale
  3. story
  4. novel
  5. fabrication
  6. fable
  7. invention
  8. figment
Noun
  • Possibly the biggest Korean release of the summer, this dark fantasy historical thriller stars Nam Joo-hyuk as Gu-cheon, a man who can traverse the world of ghosts, alongside Roh Yoon-seo as Saeng-gang, a court lady carrying a dangerous secret.
    — Hannah Abraham, Forbes.com, 30 June 2026
  • Sometimes that player fantasy can be expressed through a simple toy that just feels good, briefly.
    — Jennifer Maas, Variety, 30 June 2026
Definition of fantasy
Noun
  • The agonizing legal circus surrounding Sumner Redstone’s final years at Paramount/Viacom is a sobering cautionary tale.
    — Jeffrey Sonnenfeld, Fortune, 6 July 2026
  • The past few summers have seen nightmare tales from heatwaves in Europe — the continent with the fastest-rising temperatures under global warming.
    — Julia Buckley, CNN Money, 6 July 2026
Definition of tale
Noun
  • This story will be updated as more information becomes available.
    — David Goodhue, Miami Herald, 5 July 2026
  • Gil was trapped beneath more than 100 tons of rubble after the partial collapse of the Galerias Playa Grande commercial center, which includes buildings nine and four stories tall.
    — Mery Mogollón, Los Angeles Times, 5 July 2026
Definition of story
Noun
  • Organizing an exhibition is more like editing an anthology than writing a novel.
    — Lonnie G. Bunch III, The Atlantic, 4 July 2026
  • The film also looks at the parallel career of author John Steinbeck, who wrote often of migrant workers in California, culminating in his novel The Grapes of Wrath.
    — Steve Appleford, Rolling Stone, 4 July 2026
Definition of novel
Noun
  • Engineers could compare different surface coatings and fabrication methods to identify options that produce the least electrical noise, helping improve the performance of future quantum computers and quantum sensing technologies.
    — Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 3 July 2026
  • For Cutcher-Gershenfeld, the lesson extends far beyond fabrication laboratories.
    — C.M. Rubin, Forbes.com, 1 July 2026
Definition of fabrication
Noun
  • Explore the Wild West from the back of a rickety wagon as characters share famed fables about Paul Bunyan, Babe the Blue Ox, Pecos Bill, John Henry and Hekeke.
    — Lesly Gregory, AJC.com, 1 July 2026
  • But the turtle/cat comment just sounds like a summary of Aesop’s absolute worst fable.
    — Jen Chaney, Vulture, 26 June 2026
Definition of fable
Noun
  • Six years before Karl Benz’s first car and almost two decades prior to Henry Ford’s initial inventions, George Selden filed the first patent for a road engine, in 1879.
    — Lonnie G. Bunch III, The Atlantic, 4 July 2026
  • The forces of ignorance and grift even managed to turn parts of Americans against vaccines, arguably the single most life-saving medical invention in human history.
    — Eric Berger, ArsTechnica, 3 July 2026
Definition of invention
Noun
  • That wasn’t a figment of the imagination.
    — Roderick Boone, Charlotte Observer, 10 May 2026
  • Fear is a figment of your imagination.
    — Okla Jones, Essence, 26 Apr. 2026
Definition of figment

Browse Nearby Words

fictile
fiction
fictional
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Fiction.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/fiction. Accessed 7 Jul. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on fiction

Nglish: Translation of fiction for Spanish Speakers

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about fiction

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