easy
Fiction can take readers into imagined worlds.
What does Fiction mean?
Fiction means an imagined story or something invented and treated as true.
Dictionary definition
Fiction is literature, film, or another kind of story created from the imagination rather than presented as a factual account. It can also mean an invented claim, belief, or explanation treated as if it were true. In the formal phrase legal fiction, it is an assumption that the law accepts as true for a particular purpose even though it is not literally true.
Example sentences
Fiction in a sentence
medium
Maya writes historical fiction that mixes invented characters with a real time period.
medium
The rumor that the library was closing turned out to be pure fiction.
hard
A realistic setting does not make a novel nonfiction; its central characters and events may still be invented.
hard
Legal fiction is a formal law term for an assumption accepted for a specific legal purpose.
Writing practice
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Quick practice
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Practice the meaning of Fiction
Answer three quick questions about its meaning and related words.
Question 1 of 3
Practice 1
What does fiction mean in “She reads fiction about explorers on distant planets”?
The distant-planet stories are imaginative works rather than factual accounts.
Practice 2
Which sentence uses fiction to mean an invented claim?
Here, fiction means something invented and presented as though it were true.
Practice 3
Choose the best word: A biography may use vivid storytelling, but it is usually classified as ____ because it presents a real person’s life.
Biography is generally nonfiction because it presents factual information about a real life.
Practice complete
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Pronunciation coach
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Fiction
Voice settings
Sounds like
fik · shun · strongest beat: fik
Tap each sound part, then blend the whole word together.
Learn
WordFiction.
Partnoun.
MeaningFiction means an imagined story or something invented and treated as true.
ExampleExample: Fiction can take readers into imagined worlds.
Word breakdown
2 syllables. Say each part, then blend the word.
- Syllables
- fik · shun
- Strongest beat
- fik
- Ending
- shun
- Tip
- Put a little extra energy on fik.
Your turn
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Synonyms
Words like Fiction
imagined storyClose when fiction means a narrative created from the imagination.
invented accountClose when fiction means a claim or explanation that was made up rather than established as fact.
fabricationClose for a deliberately invented claim, but fabrication often suggests deception more strongly than literary fiction does.
Antonyms
Opposite words
nonfictionA direct category contrast when discussing writing or media presented as factual.
factA useful contrast when fiction means an invented claim, though fact is not the opposite of every fictional story or genre.
Synonym practice
Want to practice fiction synonyms in context? Try a Synonym Search question like "The book was fiction, not a true story," then compare close word choices. Practice fiction synonyms.
Word family
Fiction word family
Base word
fiction
noun
fictions
More than one invented account or work; fiction is usually uncountable when naming the broad literary category.
adjective
fictional
Created by the imagination or related to fiction.
adverb
fictionally
In an imagined or fictional way; this form is uncommon in everyday speech.
noun
fictionality
The quality of being fictional; this is mainly an academic or critical term.
Related words
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Student support
Understand Fiction
Hint for students
Look for an imaginative story or for a claim that has been invented rather than shown to be true.
Common mix-up
Fiction does not mean that every detail is impossible or false. A story may use real places, history, or science while inventing its characters or central events. In contrast, calling a claim fiction suggests it is not factual.
Try it in class or at home
Sort short examples into imaginative fiction, factual nonfiction, and invented claim. For one fictional example, underline any real-world details that make it believable.
Teacher prompt
Compare fiction as an imagined narrative with fiction as an invented claim. Why can a fictional story contain real facts without becoming nonfiction?
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Learning activities
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