Ernest Hemingway wrote the six-word story "For sale: baby shoes, never worn".

the verdict

REFUTED

the evidence says no

Recorded sources

2 sources for · 3 against

Counts group repeated records of the same source within each side. They do not measure evidence strength or source independence.

Is it true that Ernest Hemingway wrote the six-word story "For sale: baby shoes, never worn"?

No. Reference works state the six-word story is popularly misattributed to Hemingway, noting versions appeared in 1906 when he was seven and the attribution to him only surfaced in 1989; some teaching and essay sources repeat the legend without evidence.

Verdict: REFUTED · 2 sources for, 3 against · Last checked 3 Oct 2026

The private library was unavailable for some searches in this check. Missing library results are not evidence against the claim.

Evidence for · 2

National Literacy and Numeracy Week - Teachers' notes for "Six Word Australian Stories" for Secondary Years

2016

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Bradfield, K. (2016). National Literacy and Numeracy Week - Teachers' notes for "Six Word Australian Stories" for Secondary Years..

Evidence against · 3

For sale: baby shoes, never worn

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For sale: baby shoes, never worn. (n.d.). en.wikipedia.org. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/For_sale:_baby_shoes,_never_worn

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More for · 1

From Hemingway to Twitterature: The Short and Shorter of it

2011

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Rudin, M. (2011). From Hemingway to Twitterature: The Short and Shorter of it. doi.org. https://doi.org/10.3998/3336451.0014.213

More against · 2

For sale: baby shoes, never worn — author

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For sale: baby shoes, never worn — author. (n.d.). wikidata.org. https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q13368904

Six-Word Memoirs

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Six-Word Memoirs. (n.d.). en.wikipedia.org. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Six-Word_Memoirs

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