autograph

1 of 4

noun (1)

au·​to·​graph ˈȯ-tə-ˌgraf 

: something written or made with one's own hand:

a

: an original manuscript or work of art

b

: a person's handwritten signature

autography

ȯ-ˈtä-grə-fē 

noun

autograph

2 of 4

adjective

: being in the writer's own handwriting : not copied or duplicated

an autograph letter

autograph

3 of 4

verb

autographed; autographing; autographs

transitive verb

1

: to write with one's own hand

2

: to write one's signature in or on

autograph a book

autography

4 of 4

noun (2)

au·​tog·​ra·​phy ȯ-ˈtä-grə-fē 

plural -es

1

a

: the action of writing with one's own hand : one's own handwriting : autograph

b

: a collection of autographs

2

: any process in which original copy is made on or transferred direct to the printing surface

Synonyms of autograph

Noun (1)

• signature
• hand

Verb

• sign

Examples of autograph in a Sentence

Noun (1)

We asked her for her autograph.

There were several autograph seekers outside the theater.

Verb

asked the baseball player to autograph the bill of his cap

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

While other Unicorns players milled about on the turf football field at the Santa Clara school, teaching young children about the game with plastic balls and wickets, Ashwin was inundated with autograph requests. — Christian Babcock, Mercury News, 23 June 2026

However, autographs are not guaranteed. — Joseph Buczek, CBS News, 23 June 2026

Adjective

Those are autograph sellers 100 percent of the time. — Lacey Rose, HollywoodReporter, 20 May 2026

Within seconds, a smiling Ayo Dosunmu got in Wembanyama’s face, saying something that didn’t appear to be an autograph request. — Jared Weiss, New York Times, 13 May 2026

Verb

Be very careful when buying items supposedly autographed by Messi. — Brooks Peck, New York Times, 23 June 2026

News of the find — Abel’s singular, literally, Topps Superfractor rookie autographed card — didn’t take long to get back to Abel. — Betsy Helfand, Twin Cities, 8 June 2026

Word History

Etymology

Noun (1)

borrowed from New Latin autographum "manuscript in a person's own handwriting, the author's own manuscript," noun derivative from neuter of Latin autographus "written in one's own hand," borrowed from Greek autógraphos, from auto- auto- + -graphos -graph

Note: Early Modern English has besides autograph the forms with Latin and Greek endings autographum and autographon. Compare French (sixteenth century) aftographe, autographe "manuscript in the hand of the author," another possible direct source for the English word.

Adjective

borrowed from Latin & Greek; Latin autographus "written in one's own hand," borrowed from Greek autógraphos — more at autograph entry 1

Verb

derivative of autograph entry 1

Noun (2)

aut- + -graphy

First Known Use

Noun (1)

1605, in the meaning defined above

Adjective

circa 1676, in the meaning defined above

Verb

1817, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun (2)

1644, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing autograph

• autograph book

Rhymes for autograph

• biograph
• cenotaph
• chronograph
• epigraph
• epitaph
• hodograph
• holograph
• hydrograph
• lithograph
• micrograph
• monograph
• multigraph

Kids Definition

autograph

1 of 2 noun

au·​to·​graph ˈȯt-ə-ˌgraf 

: a person's signature written by hand

autograph

2 of 2 verb

: to write one's signature in or on