auteur

[ oh-tur; French oh-tœr ]

/ oʊˈtɜr; French oʊˈtœr /

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noun, plural au·teurs

[oh-turz; French oh-tœr]. /oʊˈtɜrz; French oʊˈtœr/.

a filmmaker whose individual style and complete control over all elements of production give a film its personal and unique stamp.

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Origin of auteur

1960–65; <French: literally, author, originator <Latin auctor.See author

OTHER WORDS FROM auteur

au·teur·ism, nounau·teur·ist, adjective, noun

Words nearby auteur

autecic, autecious, autecism, autecology, Auteuil, auteur, auteur theory, auth., authentic, authentical, authenticate

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2021

How to use auteur in a sentence

Among them is the fantasy epic Princess Mononoke, written and directed by the renowned auteur Hayao Miyazaki.
The Best International Movies on Netflix|Chris Grasinger|June 11, 2021|Time
After all, the director is the central, guiding agent of filmmaking, the one with the imaginative vision and the power to implement it, the auteur to whom the picture’s success or failure — artistic, if not commercial — is to be attributed.
‘A Light in the Dark’ is a love letter to the directors, personal flaws and all|Troy Jollimore|April 12, 2021|Washington Post
The acclaimed auteur spoke to Marlow Stern about a month ago on how cable TV is the new arthouse.
David Lynch on Transcendental Meditation, ‘Twin Peaks,’ and Collaborating With Kanye West|Marlow Stern|October 6, 2014|DAILY BEAST
For stars, though, the fall of the comedy auteur means that the margin of error between a hit and a farrago is razor thin.
The Trials of ‘Tammy’: Stop Policing Melissa McCarthy’s Body|Teo Bugbee|July 7, 2014|DAILY BEAST

But Noah is something different: a big, risky bet on a talented auteur.
‘Noah’ Review: An Ambitious, Flawed Biblical Tale That You Have to See|Andrew Romano|March 28, 2014|DAILY BEAST
They seemed very much like auteur works—but the auteur works of a writer, not the auteur works of a director.
Inside the Obsessive, Strange Mind of True Detective’s Nic Pizzolatto|Andrew Romano|February 4, 2014|DAILY BEAST
But apparently the studio is aware of a possibility that its auteur prefers to ignore.
Hollywood Declares 2014 the Year of the Bible|Andrew Romano|January 9, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Diderot says "Il lisait et tudiait partout, je l'ai moi-mme rencontr sur les grandes routes avec un auteur rabinnique la main."
Baron d'Holbach|Max Pearson Cushing
Ook de stijl van de auteur in het gebruik van aanhalingstekens is niet gewijzigd.
The Further Adventures of O'Neill in Holland|J. Irwin Brown
Or cet auteur, il est deux cent lieues de la Saxe, il ignore la langue et il ne s'est jamais appliqu l'histoire de l'Allemagne.
Private letters of Edward Gibbon (1753-1794) Volume 2 (of 2)|Edward Gibbon
Craignez tout d'un auteur en courroux—Fear 35 the worst from an enraged author.
Dictionary of Quotations from Ancient and Modern, English and Foreign Sources|James Wood
Souvent la perfidie retourne sur son auteur—Treachery often recoils on the head of its author.
Dictionary of Quotations from Ancient and Modern, English and Foreign Sources|James Wood

British Dictionary definitions for auteur

auteur

/ (ɔːˈtɜː) /

noun

a director whose creative influence on a film is so great as to be considered its author

Derived forms of auteur

auteurism, nounauteurist, adjective

Word Origin for auteur

French: author

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012