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biography

n. · v.
US //baɪˈɑɡɹəfi// UK //baɪˈɒɡɹəfi// bi·og·ra·phy
  1. 1 a life story (n.)
    B1 Intermediate

    a book or story that tells the true facts about a person's life.

    a written account of another person's life, typically published as a book or article.

    Example

    I just finished reading a fascinating biography of Steve Jobs.

    Example

    The historian spent five years researching the definitive biography of the queen, uncovering letters that had never been seen by the public.
    Pitfall
    He wrote his biography when he was eighty.
    He wrote his autobiography when he was eighty.

    A biography is written by someone else; an autobiography is written by the person themselves.

  2. 2 the genre of writing (n.)
    C1 Advanced Academic

    the art or business of writing about people's lives.

    the branch of literature or the professional practice concerned with the lives of individuals.

    Example

    She is a professor who specialises in eighteenth-century biography.

    Example

    Modern biography has shifted away from simple praise toward a more critical analysis of a subject's psychological motivations.
    • life writing
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  1. 3 to write a life story (v.)
    C2 Proficiency Formal Literary

    to write the story of someone's life.

    to write a biography of a specific person. This transitive use is less common than the noun form.

    Example

    The author was asked to biography the late prime minister.

    Example

    Few writers have attempted to biography such a reclusive figure, given the lack of primary source material available to the public.
Origin

From New Latin biographia, formed from Ancient Greek βίος (bíos, “life”) + γράφω (gráphō, “write”).

Word family

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