1
as in tales
a work with imaginary characters and events that is shorter and usually less complex than a novel
he's a talented writer, but his quirky stories will never find a wide readership
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
2
as in anecdotes
a brief account of something interesting that happened especially to one personally
Grandpa is always telling stories about what it was like growing up on a farm
Synonyms & Similar Words
3
as in chronologies
a relating of events usually in the order in which they happened
gave us the whole story of the accident
Synonyms & Similar Words
4
as in whispers
a rumor or report of a personal or sensational nature
stories going around that the old man had died with thousands of dollars hidden under his mattress
Synonyms & Similar Words
5
as in lies
a statement known by its maker to be untrue and made in order to deceive
she tells stories just to get attention, so don't believe that stuff about her father being somebody important
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
6
7
as in situations
position with regard to conditions and circumstances
management is trying to figure out what the story is with the accident down in the warehouse
Synonyms & Similar Words
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 stories
The jury winners this year hail from Mexico, India, Belgium, Japan, France, Italy and Germany, and their stories are set in scenic locales from Malaysia to Minneapolis.
—
Glenn Garner, Deadline, 14 Feb. 2026
This is an edition of The Wonder Reader, a newsletter in which our editors recommend a set of stories to spark your curiosity and fill you with delight.
—Rafaela Jinich, The Atlantic, 14 Feb. 2026
The first step in del Valle’s creative process is writing short essays or stories, sometimes scripted like screenplays.
—Miles Socha, Footwear News, 14 Feb. 2026
Development work spans origin stories, new character introductions and world expansion.
—Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 14 Feb. 2026
They were selected after submitting their White Castle stories.
—ABC News, 14 Feb. 2026
However, there have been several positive stories this season, starting with Cooper Flagg, the current favorite to win the Rookie of the Year award.
—Mike Curtis, Dallas Morning News, 14 Feb. 2026
The subreddit r/MyBoyfriendisAI, where users share their love stories and support each other’s AI relationships, formed in August 2024 and has nearly 50,000 members.
—Alyssa Goldberg, USA Today, 14 Feb. 2026
Her goal is to improve the health of our community through easy-to-understand facts and real people's stories.
—Nicole Villalpando, Austin American Statesman, 14 Feb. 2026
Glenn Garner, Deadline, 14 Feb. 2026
This is an edition of The Wonder Reader, a newsletter in which our editors recommend a set of stories to spark your curiosity and fill you with delight.
—Rafaela Jinich, The Atlantic, 14 Feb. 2026
The first step in del Valle’s creative process is writing short essays or stories, sometimes scripted like screenplays.
—Miles Socha, Footwear News, 14 Feb. 2026
Development work spans origin stories, new character introductions and world expansion.
—Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 14 Feb. 2026
They were selected after submitting their White Castle stories.
—ABC News, 14 Feb. 2026
However, there have been several positive stories this season, starting with Cooper Flagg, the current favorite to win the Rookie of the Year award.
—Mike Curtis, Dallas Morning News, 14 Feb. 2026
The subreddit r/MyBoyfriendisAI, where users share their love stories and support each other’s AI relationships, formed in August 2024 and has nearly 50,000 members.
—Alyssa Goldberg, USA Today, 14 Feb. 2026
Her goal is to improve the health of our community through easy-to-understand facts and real people's stories.
—Nicole Villalpando, Austin American Statesman, 14 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for stories
Noun
-
Join me each week for these and other tales about Des Moines' and Iowa's surprisingly colorful past.—
Bill Steiden,
Des Moines Register,
5 Feb. 2026
-
Rockrohr used both sides of this visual coin, telling of groundwork done by the late Harry Teshima to bring Black residents into the community and tales of lasting friendships and stories of insults thrown at Black students.—
Jerry Shnay,
Chicago Tribune,
3 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Apple AirTag There are plenty of anecdotes about why tracking your luggage is so important, but using an Apple AirTag is a reliable way to do so.—
Jasmine Gomez,
Travel + Leisure,
4 Feb. 2026
-
The anecdotes have always been compelling.—
Rustin Dodd,
New York Times,
3 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Plaintiff attorneys have built similar tools capable of producing polished demand letters, medical chronologies, and settlement ranges using massive legal datasets.—
Connie Etemadi,
USA Today,
27 Jan. 2026
-
This requires a set of skills to interrogate the past by probing deeply, constructing and reconstructing chronologies, and contemplating counterfactuals in which different decisions might have significantly altered subsequent events.—
John T. Shaw,
Twin Cities,
5 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
Both Will Levis and Anthony Richardson are supposedly on the trading block, and there are whispers Derek Carr might be coming out of retirement and needs to find a new team because the Saints have seemingly moved on.—
Omar Kelly,
Miami Herald,
10 Feb. 2026
-
Pressville is a quiet mountain town, but everything's connected through whispers.—
Amanda Favazza,
Southern Living,
6 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Since his return to office in 2025, this firehose of lies has only accelerated, distorting everything from economic data to constitutional law.—
Letters to the Editor,
The Orlando Sentinel,
8 Feb. 2026
-
This is a very common methodology for those that are spreading lies about the elections to find, just throw everything against the wall and see what sticks.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
8 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
That is, the hundreds of news clippings that substantiate her plots.—
Jon Wertheim,
CBS News,
9 Feb. 2026
-
Abu Assi was believed to have taken part in holding deceased hostages in captivity while directing terrorist plots against IDF troops.—
Emma Bussey,
FOXNews.com,
5 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
The sense is the Panthers would bring Rozeboom back at the right price, while trying to limit his exposure in passing situations.—
Joseph Person,
New York Times,
9 Feb. 2026
-
Designed for sports, workouts, and outdoor activities, including extreme situations like chasing a departing plane, the glasses feature a smart camera, immersive audio, and built-in Meta AI for everyday performance.—
Georgina Jedikovska,
Interesting Engineering,
9 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
This anthology duo features interconnected novellas by Quinn, Suzanne Enoch, Karen Hawkins, and Mia Ryan.—
Sara Netzley,
Entertainment Weekly,
25 Jan. 2026
-
The Irish actor, 29, leads A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, a new Game of Thrones spinoff series based on a series of novellas by Martin, 77, that follows naïve knight Ser Duncan the Tall (Claffey) and his squire, Egg (Dexter Sol Ansell).—
Julia Moore,
PEOPLE,
21 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Stories.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/stories. Accessed 15 Feb. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
