Meaning & use
storytelling
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Meanings
noununcountable
The activity of telling or writing stories, or the skill of doing it in an engaging way.
Grammar: Uncountable: storytelling is an art, not 'a storytelling'.
Patterns
- the art of storytelling
- good at storytelling
Her grandmother was famous for her storytelling at family gatherings.
The film shows great skill in visual storytelling.
The library holds a storytelling hour for toddlers on Saturdays.
noununcountablebusiness
The use of narrative techniques to explain ideas, sell products or persuade an audience.
Grammar: Often a modifier-like noun in business: brand storytelling.
Patterns
- brand storytelling
- storytelling skills
The marketing team relies on storytelling to connect with customers.
Good presentations use storytelling instead of long lists of figures.
Data storytelling turns charts into a clear message.
Common combinations
- oral storytelling
- Oral storytelling kept the village history alive.
- visual storytelling
- The photographer is a master of visual storytelling.
- art of storytelling
- He teaches the art of storytelling to young writers.
- storytelling session
- The storytelling session ended with a round of applause.
- digital storytelling
- Students tried digital storytelling with short videos.
Synonyms and how they differ
- narration
- Narration is the act of telling what happens, often in a formal sense such as a voice-over, while storytelling is warmer and stresses the craft.
- narrative
- Narrative is the story or account itself, not the act of telling it.
- tale-telling
- Tale-telling is old-fashioned and can mean telling lies, whereas storytelling is a respected craft.
- yarn-spinning
- Yarn-spinning is informal and implies long, entertaining, often exaggerated tales.
Word family
Commonly confused: storytelling or storyteller?
storytelling vs storyteller
A storyteller is the person, while storytelling is the activity or skill.
Practice
Which sentence uses storytelling correctly?
Choose one answer.
Storytelling is an uncountable noun and works as a subject. It is not a verb, and it normally has no plural.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “storytelling”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.