anecdote
anecdote Lexical Profile
anecdote Game Scores & Validity
• noun
A short, amusing, or interesting story about a real incident or person.
"The keynote speaker opened her presentation with a humorous anecdote about her first day in the laboratory."
An account regarded as unreliable or hearsay, especially one based on personal observation rather than rigorous scientific or statistical evidence.
"Medical researchers rely on controlled clinical trials rather than unverified anecdote when evaluating a treatment."
Word Nuance & Usage
Do not confuse 'anecdote' (a short, amusing story) with 'antidote' (a medicine taken or given to counteract a particular poison).
Word Origin & Etymology
Borrowed via French from Medieval Latin anecdota, from Ancient Greek anekdota ('things unpublished'), originally the title of Procopius's 6th-century unpublished memoirs detailing the private lives of the Byzantine court.