chronicle

1 of 2

noun

chron·​i·​cle ˈkrä-ni-kəl How to pronounce chronicle (audio)
Synonyms of chronicle
1
: a historical account of events arranged in order of time usually without analysis or interpretation
a chronicle of the Civil War
2
: narrative sense 1
a chronicle of the struggle against drug traffickers

chronicle

2 of 2

verb

chronicled; chronicling ˈkrä-ni-k(ə-)liŋ How to pronounce chronicle (audio)

transitive verb

: to present a record of in or as if in a chronicle
chronicle Victorian society
chronicle the doings of the rich and famous
chronicler
ˈkrä-ni-k(ə-)lər How to pronounce chronicle (audio)
noun

Synonyms of chronicle

Relevance

Noun

Verb

See All Synonyms & Antonyms in Thesaurus

Examples of chronicle in a Sentence

Noun a chronicle of the American Civil War a chronicle of the President's years in office Verb The book chronicles the events that led to the American Civil War. She intends to chronicle the broad social changes that have occurred in this part of the country. a magazine that chronicles the lives of the rich and famous
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Noun
The acclaimed documentary captures a 20-year personal chronicle of a family struggling with severe mental illness and social isolation. — Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 3 Aug. 2026 Social media became a running chronicle of the movement, helping transform an exam grievance into a national conversation. — Rhea Mogul, CNN Money, 28 July 2026
Verb
In history books of the future, Mikhail Gorbachev and Vladimir Putin are likely to be chronicled as two equal but diametrically opposed forces on the world stage. — Kevin Holden Platt, Forbes.com, 10 Aug. 2026 Orbit also produced the album 13 by Britpop band Blur, a record that chronicled Damon Albarn’s breakup with fellow musician Justine Frischmann (of Suede and Elastica fame). — Lily Ford, HollywoodReporter, 7 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for chronicle

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English cronycle, borrowed from Anglo-French cronike, cronicle (-le perhaps by assimilation to words with the suffix -icle, as article article entry 1), borrowed from Latin chronica "book of annals," borrowed from Greek (tà) chroniká, (hai) chronikaí, from plural of chronikós "of time, temporal, in order by time" (with a noun such as biblía "books" or graphaí "writings" understood) — more at chronic

Verb

Middle English cronyclen, verbal derivative of cronycle chronicle entry 1

First Known Use

Noun

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of chronicle was in the 14th century

Phrases Containing chronicle

Rhymes for chronicle

See All Rhymes for chronicle

Browse Nearby Words

chronicity
chronicle
chronicle drama
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Chronicle.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/chronicle. Accessed 10 Aug. 2026.

Copy Citation

Kids Definition

chronicle

1 of 2 noun
chron·​i·​cle ˈkrän-i-kəl How to pronounce chronicle (audio)
: an account of events in the order of their happening : history

chronicle

2 of 2 verb
chronicled; chronicling -k(ə-)liŋ How to pronounce chronicle (audio)
: to present a record of in or as if in a chronicle
chronicle the major events of last year
chronicler
-k(ə-)lər How to pronounce chronicle (audio)
noun
Etymology

Noun

Middle English cronicle "chronicle," from early French chronique (same meaning), derived from Greek chronikos, "of time," from chronos "time" — related to anachronism, chronic, synchronous

More from Merriam-Webster on chronicle

Nglish: Translation of chronicle for Spanish Speakers

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about chronicle

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

7 Pairs of Commonly Confused Words

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Words of the Week - Aug. 7

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

7 Pairs of Commonly Confused Words

The Longest Long Words List

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
fridge-magnet-letters
Drop a Letter Quiz August 2026 Drop a letter from a word to make a totally diffe...
See All