autobiography

noun

au·​to·​bi·​og·​ra·​phy ˌȯ-tə-bī-ˈä-grə-fē How to pronounce autobiography (audio)
-bē-
plural autobiographies
: the biography of a person narrated by that person : a usually written account of a person's life in their own words
celebrity autobiographies
The fall and rise of Chrysler Corporation is an oft-told tale—three books on the subject have appeared already, including Lee Iacocca's bestselling autobiography.Jerry Flint
Frederick Douglass's autobiographies are invaluable both for what they reveal about antebellum slavery and for what they reveal about a remarkable American.Peter Kolchin
This last book … is part autobiography and part fiction, though it is listed as fiction.Mims Cushing
Some 400 crowded both floors of the bookstore and lined up around the block as Iggy [Pop] signed the entire stock of 200 copies of his autobiography "I Need More."Publishers Weekly
In recent years, the biggest-selling baseball books have been autobiographies of colorful personalities, written with the aid of collaborators.Ray Walters
The letters are arranged chronologically and episodically to form an autobiography.William S. McFeely

Examples of autobiography in a Sentence

I read her autobiography last year.
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
There was one or two that were done by ABC News Talent around the promotion of her autobiography, Audition. Alex Jhamb Burns, Vogue, 23 June 2025 His autobiography, Model Citizen: The Autobiography of Jeremy Meeks, was released in February 2024. Nicole Briese, People.com, 18 June 2025 Juliane Koepcke holding a copy of her autobiography in 2014. Kate Nalepinski, MSNBC Newsweek, 12 June 2025 Ammar’s explosive film is the result of ten years of editing; the intensive autobiography intersects the history of Europe and the Middle East, and film history, too. Diana Lodderhose, Deadline, 3 June 2025 See All Example Sentences for autobiography

Word History

Etymology

auto- + biography, perhaps after German Autobiographie

First Known Use

1797, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of autobiography was in 1797

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Cite this Entry

“Autobiography.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/autobiography. Accessed 28 Jun. 2025.

Kids Definition

autobiography

noun
au·​to·​bi·​og·​ra·​phy ˌȯt-ə-bī-ˈäg-rə-fē How to pronounce autobiography (audio)
-bē-
: a biography written by the person it is about
autobiographer noun
autobiographical adjective
also autobiographic
autobiographically adverb
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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