novelette
novelette Lexical Profile
novelette Game Scores & Validity
• noun
A short novel or extended short story, sometimes characterized as being light, romantic, or sentimental in nature, or defined in speculative fiction publishing as a narrative of approximately 7,500 to 17,500 words.
"Her latest science fiction novelette won a prestigious award before being expanded into a full-length book."
A relatively short and free-flowing piece of instrumental music, especially for the piano, composed of contrasting lyrical episodes rather than a strict formal structure.
"The pianist concluded the recital with a lively novelette composed by Robert Schumann."
Word Nuance & Usage
In literary criticism, "novelette" is sometimes used slightly disparagingly to imply a trivial or overly sentimental work, whereas in genres like science fiction and fantasy, it is a strictly neutral classification for works between 7,500 and 17,500 words (shorter than a novella, longer than a short story).
• Rhymes for novelette
• Nearby Words
Word Origin & Etymology
First recorded in the late 18th century, formed from "novel" and the French diminutive suffix "-ette" (meaning "little").