Origin: Latin suffix -tion
Fiction has 3 different meanings across 1 category:
a literary work based on the imagination and not necessarily on fact
"The author explained that while her biography was true, she wrote the novel entirely as fiction to explore how people might have reacted differently."
a deliberately false or improbable account
"The detective knew that the witness's story was pure fiction, as no such event could have happened in reality."
Literary type using invented or imaginative writing, instead of real facts, usually written as prose.
"After reading several non-fiction biographies, she decided to switch her focus to fiction for a change of pace."
In plain English: Fiction is a made-up story that isn't based on real events or true people.
"Many people enjoy reading fiction in their spare time."
Usage: Fiction refers to stories, novels, and plays that are made up rather than based on actual events. Use this term when describing any narrative work where the characters and plot exist in the imagination of the author.
The word "fiction" entered Middle English from the Old French ficcion, which originally meant a ruse or invention. It derives from the Latin verb fingō, meaning to form, shape, or feign, and replaced an earlier native English term for false story.