autograph

1 of 3

noun

au·​to·​graph ˈȯ-tə-ˌgraf How to pronounce autograph (audio)
Synonyms of autographnext
: something written or made with one's own hand:
a
: an original manuscript or work of art
b
: a person's handwritten signature
autography
ȯ-ˈtä-grə-fē How to pronounce autograph (audio)
noun

autograph

2 of 3

adjective

: being in the writer's own handwriting : not copied or duplicated
an autograph letter

autograph

3 of 3

verb

autographed; autographing; autographs

transitive verb

1
: to write with one's own hand
2
: to write one's signature in or on
autograph a book

Synonyms

Noun

Verb

See All Synonyms & Antonyms in Thesaurus

Examples of autograph in a Sentence

Noun We asked her for her autograph. There were several autograph seekers outside the theater. Verb asked the baseball player to autograph the bill of his cap
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Noun
Josh Allen has signed a lot of autographs over the years, but one request sticks out to him more than the others. — Natasha Dye, People.com, 17 Mar. 2025 Now celebrities come to sit courtside at the U.S.C.’s Galen Center to watch her, and fans crowd around her after games, asking for pictures and autographs. — Louisa Thomas, The New Yorker, 16 Mar. 2025
Adjective
Lamar Jackson is coming back to the Louisville area this weekend when the former University of Louisville quarterback holds two autograph signing events at Planet Fitness clubs. — Jake Lourim, The Courier-Journal, 9 Jan. 2018 That attracted autograph seekers and fans waiting for Manning to arrive. — Clifton Brown, Indianapolis Star, 5 Oct. 2017
Verb
Bidders also have the opportunity to place winning bids on items autographed by head coach Andy Reid. — The Kansas City Star, Kansas City Star, 19 Jan. 2025 Like any author, Brando autographed copies of his book, at least one of which could have ended up at Mystery Pier Books. — Martha Ross, The Mercury News, 26 Dec. 2024 See All Example Sentences for autograph

Word History

Etymology

Noun

borrowed from New Latin autographum "manuscript in a person's own handwriting, the author's own manuscript," noun derivative from neuter of Latin autographus "written in one's own hand," borrowed from Greek autógraphos, from auto- auto- + -graphos -graph

Note: Early Modern English has besides autograph the forms with Latin and Greek endings autographum and autographon. Compare French (sixteenth century) aftographe, autographe "manuscript in the hand of the author," another possible direct source for the English word.

Adjective

borrowed from Latin & Greek; Latin autographus "written in one's own hand," borrowed from Greek autógraphos — more at autograph entry 1

Verb

derivative of autograph entry 1

First Known Use

Noun

1605, in the meaning defined above

Adjective

circa 1676, in the meaning defined above

Verb

1817, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of autograph was in 1605

Phrases Containing autograph

Rhymes for autograph

See All Rhymes for autograph

Browse Nearby Words

autograft
autograph
autograph book
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Autograph.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/autograph. Accessed 30 Mar. 2025.

Copy Citation

Share

Kids Definition

autograph

1 of 2 noun
au·​to·​graph ˈȯt-ə-ˌgraf How to pronounce autograph (audio)
: a person's signature written by hand

autograph

2 of 2 verb
: to write one's signature in or on

More from Merriam-Webster on autograph

Nglish: Translation of autograph for Spanish Speakers

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about autograph

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)

The Difference Between 'i.e.' and 'e.g.'

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

Words You Always Have to Look Up

Democracy or Republic: What's the difference?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Top 10 Sophisticated Insults

Flower Etymologies For Your Spring Garden

More Words with Remarkable Origins

Terroir, Oenophile, & Magnum: Ten Words About Wine

8 Words for Lesser-Known Musical Instruments
See More

Popular

See More

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)

Top 10 Sophisticated Insults

Flower Etymologies For Your Spring Garden
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Word Game Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
burrowing owl athene cunicularia tilts its head outside its burrow on marco island florida
Guess the Curious Origins of These Everyday Words Oh, that’s where that comes from…
See All