autobiography

noun

au·​to·​bi·​og·​ra·​phy ˌȯ-tə-bī-ˈä-grə-fē 

-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

Wrapped in millennial pink while sporting desk plaques reading #girlboss and #bossbabe, she was sold through autobiographies, TED Talks, and Instagram feeds promising that hustle could turn anyone into a CEO. —Melissa Fleur Afshar, MSNBC Newsweek, 17 Sep. 2025

The book serves as both autobiography and manifesto, providing a roadmap for entrepreneurs who refuse to choose between profit and purpose. —Pooja Shah, Forbes.com, 17 Sep. 2025

Her memoir Swimming Studies won the 2012 National Book Critics Circle Award for autobiography. —Leanne Shapton, The New York Review of Books, 17 Sep. 2025

Published by Vendome Press, the book is a visual autobiography and spotlights seven of their properties, photographed by Douglas Friedman, a longtime creative partner of the Hilfigers who specializes in fashion, architectural and interior design photography. —Lisa Lockwood, Footwear News, 16 Sep. 2025

Word History

Etymology

auto- + biography, perhaps after German Autobiographie

First Known Use

1797, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing autobiography

• semi-autobiography

Rhymes for autobiography

• arteriography
• biogeography
• cholangiography
• cinematography
• historiography
• photolithography
• photomicrography
• ultrasonography
• ventriculography
• angiocardiography
• electrocardiography
• arthrography

Kids Definition

autobiography

noun

au·​to·​bi·​og·​ra·​phy ˌȯt-ə-bī-ˈäg-rə-fē 

-bē-

: a biography written by the person it is about

autobiographer

-rə-fər 

noun

autobiographical

-ˌbī-ə-ˈgraf-i-kəl 

adjective

also autobiographic

-ˈgraf-ik 

autobiographically

-i-k(ə-)lē 

adverb