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Definition of biography

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So You've Been Asked to Submit a Biography

In a library, the word biography refers both to a kind of book and to a section where books of that kind are found. Each biography tells the story of a real person's life. A biography may be about someone who lived long ago, recently, or even someone who is still living, though in the last case it must necessarily be incomplete. The term autobiography refers to a biography written by the person it's about. Autobiographies are of course also necessarily incomplete.

Sometimes biographies are significantly shorter than a book—something anyone who's been asked to submit a biography for, say, a conference or a community newsletter will be glad to know. Often the word in these contexts is shortened to bio , a term that can be both a synonym of biography and a term for what is actually a biographical sketch: a brief description of a person's life. These kinds of biographies—bios—vary, but many times they are only a few sentences long. Looking at bios that have been used in the same context can be a useful guide in determining what to put in your own.

Examples of biography in a Sentence

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'biography.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Late Greek biographia , from Greek bi- + -graphia -graphy

1665, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Dictionary Entries Near biography

biographize

Cite this Entry

“Biography.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary , Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/biography. Accessed 28 May. 2024.

Kids Definition

Kids definition of biography, more from merriam-webster on biography.

Nglish: Translation of biography for Spanish Speakers

Britannica English: Translation of biography for Arabic Speakers

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about biography

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IPA : baɪˈɒgrəfɪ baɪˈɒgrəfɪ

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Phonetic spelling of biography

bi-og-ra-phy 0 rating rating ratings Private bi-og-ra-phy 0 rating rating ratings Modesta Kilback bahy-og-ruh-fee 0 rating rating ratings Victoria Kemp bio-graphy 0 rating rating ratings Melvina Witting

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Meanings for biography

an account of the series of events making up a persons life 0 rating rating ratings Thandi Barnes

Synonyms for biography

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Learn more about the word "biography" , its origin, alternative forms, and usage from Wiktionary.

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biography pronunciation with meanings, synonyms, antonyms, translations, sentences and more

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Definition of biography noun from the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary

• Boswell’s biography of Johnson
• a biography by Antonia Fraser
• The book gives potted biographies of all the major painters.
• blockbuster
• unauthorized
• biography by
• biography of

Questions about grammar and vocabulary?

Find the answers with Practical English Usage online, your indispensable guide to problems in English.

Other results

• The Dictionary of National Biography
• Dictionary of National Biography

How To Spell biography ?

How to pronounce biography.

Correct pronunciation for the word "biography" is [ba͡ɪˈɒɡɹəfi], [ba‍ɪˈɒɡɹəfi], [b_aɪ_ˈɒ_ɡ_ɹ_ə_f_i].

Definition of biography

The history of the life and character of a particular person; biographic literature.

Nuttall's Standard dictionary of the English language By Nuttall, P.Austin

What are the misspellings for biography?

• boigraphy ,
• biograohy ,
• biogrpahy ,
• phography ,
• biographys ,
• biographgy ,
• biograhpy ,
• biliography ,
• biorgraphy ,
• bilography ,
• biographhy ,
• biographyis ,
• biblography

What are similar-sounding words for biography?

• bar graph ,
• biographic ,
• biographer ,
• biographical .

What is the present tense of Biography?

• The personal forms of the verb " biography " in present tense are:
• - I biography
• - You biography
• - He/she/it biographies
• - We biography
• - They biography

What is the past tense of Biography?

• The personal forms of the verb " biography " in the past tense are as follows:
• - I biographied
• - You biographied
• - He/she/it biographied
• - We biographied
• - They biographied

What is the adverb for biography?

The adverb form of the word "biography" is "biographically" .

What is the adjective for biography?

The adjective form of the word "biography" is "biographical" .

Usage over time for biography:

This graph shows how "biography" have occurred between 1800 and 2008 in a corpus of English books.

What is the plural form of biography?

The plural of the "biography" can be the " biographies ".

What is the singular form of biography?

The singular of the "biography" can be the "biography".

Synonyms for Biography:

• composition
• autobiography
• description
• enumeration
• curriculum vitae

Nearby words

• biographical account
• biographical sketch
• biographically
• Biographies
• Biographize
• biohazard suit
• biohazardous
• Correct spelling for biography [Infographic] | Spellchecker.net
• biography - English spelling dictionary
• Biography | Definition of biography by Merriam-Webster
• Biography definition and meaning | Collins English Dictionary
• Biography | Definition of biography at Dictionary.com
• Biography dictionary definition | biography defined

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What is the pronunciation of 'biography' in English?

Phonetics content data source explained in this page .

Collocations

Culture & travel, pronunciation.

Context sentences

• open_in_new Link to source
• warning Request revision
• biodegradable
• biodiversity
• bioengineered
• bioengineering
• biofeedback
• biographers
• biographical
• biographies
• biologically
• biomaterials

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[ bahy- og -r uh -fee , bee- ]

the biography of Byron by Marchand.

• an account in biographical form of an organization, society, theater, animal, etc.
• such writings collectively.
• the writing of biography as an occupation or field of endeavor.

/ baɪˈɒɡrəfɪ; ˌbaɪəˈɡræfɪkəl /

• an account of a person's life by another
• such accounts collectively
• The story of someone's life. The Life of Samuel Johnson , by James Boswell , and Abraham Lincoln , by Carl Sandburg , are two noted biographies. The story of the writer's own life is an autobiography .

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Derived forms.

• biˈographer , noun
• biographical , adjective
• ˌbioˈgraphically , adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of biography 1

Example Sentences

Barrett didn’t say anything on Tuesday to contradict our understanding of her ideological leanings based on her past rulings, past statements and biography.

Republicans, meanwhile, focused mostly on her biography — including her role as a working mother of seven and her Catholic faith — and her credentials, while offering few specifics about her record as a law professor and judge.

She delivered an inspiring biography at one point, reflecting on the sacrifice her mother made to emigrate to the United States.

As Walter Isaacson pointed out in his biography of Benjamin Franklin, Franklin proposed the postal system as a vital network to bond together the 13 disparate colonies.

Serving that end, the book is not an in-depth biography as much as a summary of Galileo’s life and science, plus a thorough recounting of the events leading up to his famous trial.

The Amazon biography for an author named Papa Faal mentions both Gambia and lists a military record that matches the FBI report.

For those unfamiliar with Michals, an annotated biography and useful essays are included.

Did you envision your Pryor biography as extending your previous investigation—aesthetically and historically?

But Stephen Kotkin's new biography reveals a learned despot who acted cunningly to take advantage of the times.

Watching novelists insult one another is one of the primary pleasures of his biography.

He also published two volumes of American Biography, a work which his death abridged.

Mme. de Chaulieu gave her husband the three children designated in the duc's biography.

The biography of great men always has been, and always will be read with interest and profit.

I like biography far better than fiction myself: fiction is too free.

The Bookman: "A more entertaining narrative whether in biography or fiction has not appeared in recent years."

Related Words

• autobiography

Definition of 'biography'

biography in American English

Biography in british english, examples of 'biography' in a sentence biography, related word partners biography, trends of biography.

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Related terms of biography

• new biography
• brief biography
• short biography
• author biography
• detailed biography
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biography noun

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What does the noun biography mean?

There are three meanings listed in OED's entry for the noun biography . See ‘Meaning & use’ for definitions, usage, and quotation evidence.

How common is the noun biography ?

How is the noun biography pronounced, british english, u.s. english, where does the noun biography come from.

Earliest known use

The earliest known use of the noun biography is in the mid 1600s.

OED's earliest evidence for biography is from 1661, in the writing of John Fell, bishop of Oxford.

biography is a borrowing from Latin.

Etymons: Latin biographia .

Nearby entries

• biognosy, n. 1880
• biograph, n. 1825–
• biograph, v. 1776–
• biographee, n. 1812–
• biographer, n. 1644–
• biographic, adj. 1752–
• biographical, adj. 1668–
• biographically, adv. ?1719–
• biographist, n. a1661–
• biographize, v. 1793–
• biography, n. 1661–
• biography, v. 1794–
• biographying, n. 1858–
• biohacker, n. 1988–
• biohacking, n. 1992–
• biohazard, n. 1965–
• biohazardous, adj. 1973–
• bioherm, n. 1928–
• biohermal, adj. 1937–
• bioidentical, adj. 1995–
• bioimaging, n. 1983–

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Meaning & use

Pronunciation, compounds & derived words, entry history for biography, n..

biography, n. was revised in November 2010.

biography, n. was last modified in July 2023.

oed.com is a living text, updated every three months. Modifications may include:

• further revisions to definitions, pronunciation, etymology, headwords, variant spellings, quotations, and dates;
• new senses, phrases, and quotations.

Revisions and additions of this kind were last incorporated into biography, n. in July 2023.

Earlier versions of this entry were published in:

OED First Edition (1887)

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OED Second Edition (1989)

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Citation details

Factsheet for biography, n., browse entry.

BIOGRAPHY Pronunciation

How to pronounce biography.

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English Pronunciation

IPA : /baɪˈɒɡɹəfi/

Pronunciation in other languages

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Acknowledgements

The pronunciations come from the Cambridge Advanced Learners Dictionary & Thesaurus, the Cambridge Academic Content Dictionary, and the Cambridge Business English Dictionary.

Pronunciation editors Connie Baboukis John K. Bollard Lucy Hollingworth Pippa Mayfield Katherine Sietsema Morgan Tedford

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