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Literature vocabulary · Genres and Forms

Novella

Meaning in literature, with examples

/nəˈvelə/nounCommon term

In literature, novella means: A work of prose fiction that is longer than a short story but shorter than a novel, usually focused on one main conflict.

In Turkish: uzun öykü, kısa roman, novella

How it is used

Used by critics and publishers for works such as Kafka's The Metamorphosis, Hemingway's The Old Man and the Sea and Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men. There is no exact word count, but prize rules often set one. The form goes back to the Italian novelle of Boccaccio.

Example sentences

  1. You can read the novella in an afternoon, but it stays with you for weeks.

  2. Kafka's best-known novella opens with a man waking up as an insect.

Common collocations

  • a short novella
  • novella-length
  • publish a novella
  • novella collection
  • novelA long story written in prose that describes imaginary people and events, usually long enough to fill a whole book and to develop characters in detail.
  • short storyA piece of prose fiction that can be read in one sitting, usually focusing on a few characters and a single main event or moment.
  • fictionStories, such as novels and short stories, that describe imaginary events and people rather than real ones.
  • genreA category of literature defined by shared features of form, style or subject, such as poetry, drama and the novel, or crime, fantasy and romance.

More terms: Genres and Forms

Practise with graded reading

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