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Anecdote

2 stages from Greek to English.

Today it means a short, entertaining story about a real incident or person
1
Stage 1 of 2
anekdota
Greek · ancient
"unpublished things"
literally unpublished things, from an- (not) and ekdotos (published)
2
Stage 2 of 2
anecdote
English · 1670s
"a short, entertaining account of an incident"
broadened from secret historical accounts to any short, entertaining story
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