novella

[noh-vel-uh]

noun

plural

novellas, novelle 

1. a tale or short story of the type contained in the Decameron of Boccaccio.

2. a fictional prose narrative that is longer and more complex than a short story; a short novel.

novella

/ nəʊˈvɛlə /

noun

1. (formerly) a short narrative tale, esp a popular story having a moral or satirical point, such as those in Boccaccio's Decameron

2. a short novel; novelette

Word History and Origins

Origin of novella¹

From Italian, dating back to 1900–05; novel ¹

Word History and Origins

Origin of novella¹

C20: from Italian; see _novel ¹

Example Sentences

Stamp's leap to stardom came when he was cast in the title role of a 1962 film, Billy Budd, based on the Herman Melville novella.

From BBC

The Cheesecake Factory’s spiral-bound novella of a menu feels less like dinner and more like a psychedelic thesis on American appetite.

From Salon

The film comes courtesy of the softer side of Stephen King, adapted from a story in his 2020 collection of novellas, “If It Bleeds.”

From Salon

I was really intrigued, and then I went back and read “All Systems Red,” which is the first novella that Martha Wells wrote based on this character, and I just fell in love with Murderbot.

From Salon

That sense of quiet disorientation — of a world slowly unraveling — pulses through “The Life of Chuck,” director Mike Flanagan’s strange and tender adaptation of a 2020 Stephen King novella.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• fiction 
• narrative 
• paperback 
• prose 
• story 
• tale 
• yarn