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 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 represents 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 of memoir

• biography
• autobiography

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

Sun Yung Shin will be launching the memoir at Minneapolis’s Moon Palace Books, September 15 at 7pm. — Literary Hub, 15 Sep. 2026

Allison’s memoir reminded them of their own process together. — Carly Tagen-Dye, PEOPLE, 15 Sep. 2026

Many of Jumbo’s dancers write fiction and memoir, host literary salons across Los Angeles and find ways to tell their own stories rather than serve as muses. — Maddie Connors, Los Angeles Times, 15 Sep. 2026

Mandela’s second volume of memoirs was unfinished at the time of his death in 2013. — Encyclopedia Britannica, 14 Sep. 2026

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
• alvar
• 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