The word history can have several meanings, depending on whether it is used in academic contexts or in everyday speech.
- In its broadest meaning, history describes everything that has ever happened, the complete sequence of past events in time and space. This includes the history of the Earth, of nature, and of humanity.
- In a narrower sense, history refers specifically to the development and transformation of human societies. It covers the changes brought about by individuals and social groups through their actions and ideas, both in the past and as these influences continue into the present. This is the sense in which the word is most frequently used.
- In literature, the word history or story refers to a narrative, a spoken or written account that organizes real or imagined events into a meaningful sequence.
- In addition, the term history can refer to the discipline that studies the past (historical science), to the act of writing about past events (historiography), or to the school and university subject history.
Since the term is used in several related ways, its precise meaning can only be understood from the surrounding context.