backstory

See also: back-story and back story

Contents

English

Alternative forms

• back story
• back-story

Etymology

back +‎ story

Noun

backstory (plural backstories)

1. The previous life and experiences of a person, especially a character in a dramatic work, but also a real-life person.
   • 2017 December 27, “The Guardian view on Prince Harry: the monarchy’s best insurance policy”, in the Guardian‎^[1]:

     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.

   • 2004 January 16, Kelly Kleiman, “Her Side of the Story”, in Chicago Reader‎^[2]:

     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.

2. A fictitious account of a person's history designed to conceal their actual history and motives; a cover story.
3. A prequel.

Translations

previous life and experiences of a fictional character

• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 背景故事 (bèijǐng gùshì)

• Finnish: taustatarina
• French: toile de fond (fr)
• German: Hintergrundgeschichte, Backstory
• Hungarian: előtörténet, háttértörténet

• Japanese: 裏話 (うらばなし, urabanashi)
• Korean: 뒷이야기 (dwisiyagi)
• Malay: latar tempat
• Spanish: historia de fondo
• Swedish: bakgrundshistoria, bakgrundsberättelse

prequel