author

1 of 2

noun

au·​thor ˈȯ-thər How to pronounce author (audio)
1
: the writer of a literary work (such as a book)
a famous author
2
a
: one that originates or creates something : source
software authors
film authors
the author of this crime
b
capitalized : god sense 1
authorial adjective

author

2 of 2

verb

authored; authoring; authors

transitive verb

: to be the author of : write
a writer who has authored several bestsellers

Examples of author in a Sentence

Noun The author of the article didn't check his facts. I enjoyed the book, but I can't remember the name of the author. She is the author of a plan for reforming the school system. Verb authored a new biography of Thomas Jefferson
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
For starters, the authors agree — and validate — that today’s women in the workplace earn 84 percent of what men earn. Phil Blair, San Diego Union-Tribune, 18 Mar. 2024 Arena denied the claim but acknowledged that the content had been created by a third party company where authors used pseudonyms to protect their identities. Stephen Battaglio, Los Angeles Times, 18 Mar. 2024 Cass Warner, filmmaker, author and granddaughter of Harry Warner, co-founder of Warner Bros., has died. Chris Yogerst, The Hollywood Reporter, 18 Mar. 2024 The reporter was Stephen Aris, an accomplished journalist and author. Bill McGraw, Detroit Free Press, 17 Mar. 2024 More than a dozen authors have dropped out of a PEN America festival, citing the literary nonprofit’s inaction over the war in Gaza. Adela Suliman, Washington Post, 16 Mar. 2024 The water packaging’s bottles and caps were made from these types of plastic, leading the authors to believe bits of the material shed into the water during packaging and transportation. Kaitlin Sullivan, Health, 16 Mar. 2024 Eriq La Salle Opens Up About His Thrilling Second Act: Detective Novelist (Exclusive) Souljah is the author of seven works of fiction and nonfiction. Carly Tagen-Dye, Peoplemag, 15 Mar. 2024 The veteran actor caught an online talk presented by Stephen Asma, an author and philosophy professor at Columbia College Chicago. Thr Staff, The Hollywood Reporter, 6 Mar. 2024
Verb
The questions come from a proposal authored by Republicans in the state Legislature, which got final votes in November. Journal Sentinel, 18 Mar. 2024 That’s why state Sen. María Elena Durazo authored Senate Bill 1201 to require LLCs and other corporate entities to make beneficial ownership information public. Suzanne Dershowitz, The Mercury News, 14 Mar. 2024 The new report, which was was authored by the Pentagon’s All-Domain Anomaly Resolution Office, or AARO, was ostensibly meant to investigate whether the government had covered up evidence of extraterrestrial life. Lucas Ropek / Gizmodo, Quartz, 9 Mar. 2024 House Bill 1002, authored by Rep. Chris Jeter, R-Fishers, is on the way to Gov. Eric Holcomb for consideration after only one lawmaker in either chamber voted against its final passage. Brittany Carloni, The Indianapolis Star, 8 Mar. 2024 While the origins of daylight saving time are disputed — ranging from an essay authored by Benjamin Franklin in 1784 to a pamphlet written by British builder William Willet in 1907— the time change itself is standardized. S. Dev, CBS News, 8 Mar. 2024 Caroline Rodier, associate director of the Transportation Center at UC Davis, authored a study on more than a dozen car-sharing programs across the U.S. since the early 2000s. Ari Plachta, Sacramento Bee, 7 Mar. 2024 In recent years, she’s also authored three books about her adventures as a working mom. Théoden Janes, Charlotte Observer, 6 Mar. 2024 Throughout his career, Bordwell would author, co-author or edit some 22 books and monographs and more than 140 journal articles, book chapters, introductions to collections and review essays, UW said. Diego Ramos Bechara, Variety, 2 Mar. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'author.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English autour, auctour, actour "originator, creator, authoritative source, writer," borrowed from Anglo-French & Latin; Anglo-French auctur, auttour, actour "originator, creator, instigator, party, authority, writer," borrowed from Latin auctōr-, auctor "principal in a sale, person entitled to take action or authorize, authoritative writer, originator, creator, agent, founder," from augēre "to increase" + -tor, agent suffix — more at eke entry 2

Note: Variants with medial -th-, as aucthour, authour, etc., become current in the sixteenth century and lead to spelling pronunciations with [θ] in the seventeenth century. The spellings are presumed to reflect association with authentic and its Latin and Greek sources, as author in the sense "the first beginner and mover of anything," as Samuel Johnson put it, is the ultimate guarantor of authenticity.

Verb

derivative of author entry 1

First Known Use

Noun

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 2a

Verb

1597, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of author was in the 14th century

Dictionary Entries Near author

Cite this Entry

“Author.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/author. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

author

noun
au·​thor
ˈȯ-thər
1
: a person who creates a written work : writer
2
: one that starts or creates
author of a plan for education
author verb

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