biography
by-OG-ruh-fee
/baɪˈɒɡ.rə.fi/
An account of someone's life written by another person.
Focuses on third-person factual recounting of another individual's full life journey, research-backed and historical.
The story behind the word. Coined in late Greek from 'bios' (life) and 'graphein' (to write/record). The term was introduced into English in the 17th century by writers like John Dryden to describe life-writing as an independent literary art separate from general history.
Word relationships
- life story: 'Life story' is an informal description, whereas 'biography' is a formal literary and historical term.
- profile: A profile is a short journalistic piece on a person, while a biography is a comprehensive book-length work.
- autobiography: An autobiography is written by the subject themselves rather than an outside observer.
Commonly confused with
- biology: Biology is the scientific study of living organisms, while biography is the written history of a human life.
Word family
- biographer (noun): A person who writes a biography.
- biographical (adjective): Relating to a person's life history.
Collocations
- authorized biography
- unauthorized biography
- write a biography
- definitive biography
Example sentences
- "The historian spent ten years writing a definitive biography of Abraham Lincoln." Publishing
- "The director turned the Pulitzer-winning biography into a critically acclaimed feature film." Film Industry
Memory hook
BIO (life) + GRAPHY (writing) = Writing about a life. Biography: writing a life story.
When not to use
Do not use 'biography' when a person writes their own life story — that is an autobiography.
Fun facts
- James Boswell's 1791 'The Life of Samuel Johnson' is widely considered the foundation of modern biography as a literary art form.
Take your vocabulary further with LangBlitz
Our English vocabulary app: FSRS spaced repetition, 5,000+ curated words across 119 topic groups, CEFR A1 to C2. Explore your mastery with the beautiful Vocabulary World feature.