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Synonyms

memoir

American  
[mem-wahr, -wawr] / ˈmɛm wɑr, -wɔr /

noun

  1. a record of events written by a person having intimate knowledge of them and based on personal observation.

  2. Usually memoirs.

    1. an account of one's personal life and experiences; autobiography.

    2. the published record of the proceedings of a group or organization, as of a learned society.

  3. a biography or biographical sketch.

memoir British  
/ ˈmɛmwɑː /

noun

  1. a biography or historical account, esp one based on personal knowledge

  2. an essay or monograph, as on a specialized topic

  3. obsolete a memorandum

"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

Other Word Forms

  • memoirist noun

Etymology

Origin of memoir

First recorded in 1560–70; from French mémoire, from Latin memoria; memory

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

People on the internet seem to be taking Lindy West’s memoir as millennial feminism’s final death knell.

From Slate • Mar. 31, 2026

The titular “hare with the amber eyes” in Edmund de Waal’s memoir is a netsuke, a tiny Japanese carving intended as a fastener for use with a kimono.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 30, 2026

Recording sessions took several years, fitted in around McCartney's hectic touring schedule, as well as the production of the Beatles documentary Get Back and the writing of a memoir about the star's 1970s band, Wings.

From BBC • Mar. 26, 2026

The truth is an absolute defense, but no memoir like this gets published without armies of lawyers getting involved.

From Salon • Mar. 24, 2026

“Stealing was always a problem,” Charles Robert Jenkins wrote in his 2008 memoir about forty years of living inside the country.

From "Escape from Camp 14: One Man's Remarkable Odyssey from North Korea to Freedom in the West" by Blaine Harden

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.