novel1

[nov-uh l] /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 (def 1).
Origin
1560-70; < Italian novella (storia) new kind of story. See novel2
Related forms
novellike, adjective

novel2

[nov-uh l] /ˈnɒv əl/
adjective
1.
of a new kind; different from anything seen or known before:
a novel idea.
Origin
1375-1425; late Middle English (< Middle French, Old French) < Latin novellus fresh, young, novel, diminutive of novus new
Synonyms
See new.

novel3

[nov-uh l] /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.
Origin
1605-15; < Late Latin novella (constitūtiō) a new (regulation, order). See novel2
Examples from the web for novel
  • My current novel, which has been well received took ten years of research and five years of real work.
  • In other words, the novel has ceased to be a mirror of life and manners.
  • The novel is a brilliant image of a national psychosis.
  • For what is a novel but a story that fills its sails with these winds,
  • Scientists hardly ever write novels.
  • Getting the jump on someone, shooting first and actually killing them is quite novel.
  • It was quite the novel experience.
  • His entire life has the feel of an Edwardian adventure novel.
  • Some attorneys become writers of novels and screenplays.
  • She is the author of four novels.
British Dictionary definitions for novel

novel1

/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 novel, the literary genre represented by novels
3.
(usually pl) (obsolete) a short story or novella, as one of those in the Decameron of Boccaccio
Word Origin
C15: from Old French novelle, from Latin novella (narrātiō) new (story); see novel²

novel2

/ˈnɒvəl/
adjective
1.
of a kind not seen before; fresh; new; original: a novel suggestion
Word Origin
C15: from Latin novellus new, diminutive of novus new

novel3

/ˈnɒvəl/
noun
1.
(Roman law) a new decree or an amendment to an existing statute See also Novels
Word Origin and History for novel
adj.

"new, strange, unusual," early 15c., but little used before 1600, from Old French novel, nouvel "new, young, fresh, recent; additional; early, soon" (Modern French nouveau, fem. nouvelle), from Latin novellus "new, young, recent," diminutive of novus "new" (see new).

n.

"fictitious narrative," 1560s, from Italian novella "short story," originally "new story," from Latin novella "new things" (cf. Middle French novelle, French nouvelle), neuter plural or fem. of novellus (see novel (adj.)). Originally "one of the tales or short stories in a collection" (especially Boccaccio's), later (1630s) "long work of fiction," works which had before that been called romances.

A novel is like a violin bow; the box which gives off the sounds is the soul of the reader. [Stendhal, "Life of Henri Brulard"]

novel in Culture

novel definition


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