biographer
Americannoun
Etymology
Origin of biographer
First recorded in 1705–15; biograph(y) + -er 1
Explanation
A biographer is a writer who specializes in true stories of other people's lives. The finished books that biographers publish are called biographies. In some cases, well-known writers, actors, and other public figures work with biographers in order to collaborate on their own biographies. Other times, biographers research the lives of their subjects after they've died. In the 1660s, they were known as biographists. The root of all variations on biography is the Late Greek biographia, "description of life," from bio-, "life," and graphia, "record or account."
Vocabulary lists containing biographer
Words to Live By: Bio
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Florida's B.E.S.T. Roots: bio
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Florida's B.E.S.T. Roots: graph
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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.
“I don’t know a single Black girl who hasn’t had a profound connection to ‘Black Girl’s Window,’ ” curator and Saar’s biographer, Zoé Whitley, told The Times in a recent interview.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 28, 2026
Mr. Jones, a biographer and a former Capitol Hill aide, is well-suited to the task.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 24, 2026
But Muslim shrines have not seen the same largesse, said analyst and Modi biographer Mukhopadhyay.
From Barron's ● Jun. 25, 2026
It prompted an open letter to the gallery from Lord Roberts of Belgravia, a Churchill biographer - signed by more than 50 peers including Churchill's grandson Sir Nicholas Soames - saying this was incorrect.
From BBC ● Jun. 22, 2026
“It was questioned by many if the loss of Mr. Root was not irreparable,” wrote James Ellsworth in a letter to Burnham’s biographer, Charles Moore.
From "The Devil in the White City" by Erik Larson
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.
