memoir

noun

mem·​oir ˈmem-ˌwär 

-ˌwȯr

1

: an official note or report : memorandum

2

a

: a narrative composed from personal experience

every memoir reminds us of the faraway and long ago, of loss and change, of persons and places beyond recall

—Abigail McCarthy

b

: autobiography

—usually used in plural

His memoirs recall his student days at Harvard.

c

: biography

his memoir of his longtime friend

3

a

: an account of something noteworthy : report

the work described and discussed in this memoir represent a first-class investigation

—J. A. Steers

b

memoirs plural : the record of the proceedings of a learned society

memoirist

ˈmem-ˌwär-ist 

-ˌwȯr-

noun

Synonyms

• bio
• biography
• life

Examples of memoir in a Sentence

a retired politician who is writing his memoirs

He has written a memoir of his mother.

a memoir of Hollywood in the 1930s

Recent Examples on the Web

Based on Robert Evans’ 1994 memoir and narrated by the man himself, the film tells of the last, so far, of the old school, hands-on Hollywood producers, who oversaw the second golden age of Paramount Pictures from 1967 and 1974. —Thomas Doherty, HollywoodReporter, 20 Apr. 2025

In his memoir Source Code, Bill Gates explains a great deal about his early years. —Jonathan Wai, Forbes.com, 17 Apr. 2025

In Stein’s memoir, Weinstein saw something more than talent. —Leah Abrams, Them., 17 Apr. 2025

According to the season trailer, released Tuesday, Carrie will move on from her heavy memoir and try her hand at writing fiction. —Kimi Robinson, USA Today, 16 Apr. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle French memoire, from memoire memory, from Latin memoria

First Known Use

1571, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for memoir

• adar
• afar
• ajar
• alar
• ansar
• bazaar
• bizarre
• boxcar
• boyar
• bulbar
• cachar
• cigar

Kids Definition

memoir

noun

mem·​oir ˈmem-ˌwär 

-ˌwȯ(ə)r

1

a

: a story of a personal experience

b

: autobiography

—usually used in plural

c

: biography

2

: report entry 1 sense 2