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
Abigail McCarthy
b
: autobiography
—usually used in 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
J. A. Steers
b
memoirs plural
: the record of the proceedings of a learned society
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
Dirt-spilling superstar memoirs?
—Chris Hewitt, Boston Herald, 1 Mar. 2026
Bessette-Kennedy’s engagement ring, made of round-cut sapphires and diamonds on a platinum band, was a copy of a gold and emerald ring that Jackie wore, according to Carole Radziwill’s memoir What Remains.
—Emily Chan, Vogue, 27 Feb. 2026
Here are 10 books—everything from memoirs to thrillers—to tuck in your bag, no matter where you're headed.
—Kait Hanson, Southern Living, 26 Feb. 2026
Andrew was stripped of the remainder of his titles in late 2025, after additional allegations by Giuffre (who died in April 2025) came to light in her posthumous memoir.
—Callum Sutherland, Time, 26 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for memoir
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Chris Hewitt, Boston Herald, 1 Mar. 2026
Bessette-Kennedy’s engagement ring, made of round-cut sapphires and diamonds on a platinum band, was a copy of a gold and emerald ring that Jackie wore, according to Carole Radziwill’s memoir What Remains.
—Emily Chan, Vogue, 27 Feb. 2026
Here are 10 books—everything from memoirs to thrillers—to tuck in your bag, no matter where you're headed.
—Kait Hanson, Southern Living, 26 Feb. 2026
Andrew was stripped of the remainder of his titles in late 2025, after additional allegations by Giuffre (who died in April 2025) came to light in her posthumous memoir.
—Callum Sutherland, Time, 26 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for memoir
Cite this Entry
“Memoir.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/memoir. Accessed 4 Mar. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
memoir
noun
mem·oir
ˈmem-ˌwär 
-ˌwȯ(ə)r
1
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