Verisimilitude is the "lifelikeness" or believability of a
work of fiction. The word comes from meaning truth and
similis meaning similar. Language philosopher
Steve Neale distinguishes between two types:
cultural verisimilitude, meaning plausibility of the fictional work within the cultural and/or historical context of the real world, outside of the work; and
generic verisimilitude, meaning plausibility of a fictional work within the bounds of its own
genre (so that, for example, a character's regularly singing about her feelings is a believable action within the
fictional universe of a
musical).