novel

¹ American  

[nov-uhl] / ˈnɒv əl /

noun

1. a fictitious prose narrative of considerable length and complexity, portraying characters and usually presenting a sequential organization of action and scenes.

2. (formerly) novella.

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novel ² American  

[nov-uhl] / ˈnɒv əl /

adjective

1. of a new and unusual kind; different from anything seen or known before.

   a novel idea.

2. not previously detected or reported.

   the emergence of novel strains of the virus.

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novel ³ American  

[nov-uhl] / ˈnɒv əl /

noun

1. Roman Law.

   1. an imperial enactment subsequent and supplementary to an imperial compilation and codification of authoritative legal materials.

   2. Usually Novels imperial enactments subsequent to the promulgation of Justinian's Code and supplementary to it: one of the four divisions of the Corpus Juris Civilis.

2. Civil Law. an amendment to a statute.

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novel ¹ British  

/ ˈnɒvəl /

noun

1. Roman law a new decree or an amendment to an existing statute See also Novels

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novel ² British  

/ ˈnɒvəl /

noun

1. an extended work in prose, either fictitious or partly so, dealing with character, action, thought, etc, esp in the form of a story

2. the literary genre represented by novels

3. obsolete (usually plural) a short story or novella, as one of those in the Decameron of Boccaccio

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novel ³ British  

/ ˈnɒvəl /

adjective

1. of a kind not seen before; fresh; new; original

   a novel suggestion

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novel Cultural  

1. A long, fictional narration in prose. Great Expectations and Huckleberry Finn are novels, as are War and Peace and Lord of the Flies.

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Usage

What is a novel? A novel is a long work of fiction written in prose that tells a narrative involving characters and usually involving an organized set of actions occurring in a setting. Let’s break that down. Fiction is a type of writing (literature) that involves characters that don’t exist or people (usually famous) who have been reimagined (fictionalized). The events in fiction are made up, or, in the case of historic events, were fictionalized. Prose is the ordinary manner of writing that we use, that is, using complete sentences and not poetic verses. A narrative is a telling of events or experiences. Stories and essays are narratives. A setting is a story’s location and time. Some novels take place in our own time and place, while others take place in the past, in another country, in the future, and even in space or on other planets (real or made-up). Length is usually the key difference between works of fiction. While there are no official rules, a novel is generally at least 50,000 words, and many novels are much longer than this. By contrast, a short story is often 1,000 to 10,000 words, although flash fiction can be as short as 500 words. A novella (a short novel) is somewhere in between a short story and a novel.

Related Words

See new.

Other Word Forms

• novellike adjective

Etymology

Origin of novel¹

First recorded in 1560–70; from Italian novella (storia) “new (story)”; see origin at novel ²

Origin of novel²

First recorded in 1375–1425; late Middle English, from Anglo-French, Middle French novel, from Old French novel, nouvel, from Latin novellus “fresh, young, novel,” diminutive of novus “new”; see origin at new

Origin of novel³

First recorded in 1605–15; from Late Latin novella (constitūtiō) “a new (regulation, order)”; see origin at novel ²

Explanation

If something is so new and original that it's never been seen, used or even thought of before, call it novel. The noun novel describes a book-length work of fiction. New and novel come from the same Indo-European root but by different paths. Whereas new is a Germanic word coming from Old English, novel is based on Latin novellus "new, young, fresh." If something is novel, it is new but also original, fresh and unique. Companies are always looking for that novel idea that will earn them millions and skydiving is a novel experience, especially if you're not adventurous.

Example Sentences

Though framed by a fantastical conceit, “Dear Monica Lewinsky” is at its core a realist novel, influenced by the feminism of #MeToo and precise in its delineation of character and place.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 22, 2026

During the early years of his tenure, with no novel product releases akin to the category-redefining iPhone or iPod, some critics questioned whether innovation at the company was waning.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 21, 2026

Privately-owned Kelonia is developing novel treatments for multiple myeloma, a blood cancer.

From Barron's • Apr. 20, 2026

Frozen concentrate fell behind the novel idea of “not from concentrate”—no longer did they squeeze it and freeze it.

From Slate • Apr. 20, 2026

“Audio-animatronic books. You get to act out a whole novel along with its main characters.”

From "Mr. Lemoncello's Library Olympics" by Chris Grabenstein

Related Words

• different
• innovative
• odd
• offbeat
• peculiar
• strange
• unique
• unusual