Backstory

Quick meaning: Backstory is a noun meaning The previous experiences and life of a person, specifically (narratology, especially in film, television) a character in a dramatic work.

Meaning

The previous experiences and life of a person, specifically (narratology, especially in film, television) a character in a dramatic work.

More Meanings

1. (chiefly espionage, law enforcement) A fictitious account of a person's history designed to conceal their actual history and motives.

Example Sentences

What’s the backstory of our new colleague?

These backstories cast the characters' behavior in a new light: of course Gertrude would promptly marry the man who saved her from abuse; of course Ophelia would be desperate and indiscreet in seeking Hamlet's love.

Prince Harry may yet turn out to be the crown’s best insurance policy. By marrying Meghan Markle, he is linking royalty with a 21st-century celebrity who has a backstory that many people in Britain can identify with.

Inexplicably, and at great risk to the integrity of the movie, the filmmakers have burdened him with a psychological back story pulled out of a folder in some studio filing cabinet. Why does [Willy] Wonka spend his days confecting sweets?

Word Forms

• backstories
• back-story
• back story

Related Words

Related dictionary entries include backdrop, lore, times, story, plot, narrativity.

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