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So You've Been Asked to Submit a Biography
In a library, the word biography refers both to a kind of book and to a section where books of that kind are found. Each biography tells the story of a real person's life. A biography may be about someone who lived long ago, recently, or even someone who is still living, though in the last case it must necessarily be incomplete. The term autobiography refers to a biography written by the person it's about. Autobiographies are of course also necessarily incomplete.
Sometimes biographies are significantly shorter than a book—something anyone who's been asked to submit a biography for, say, a conference or a community newsletter will be glad to know. Often the word in these contexts is shortened to bio , a term that can be both a synonym of biography and a term for what is actually a biographical sketch: a brief description of a person's life. These kinds of biographies—bios—vary, but many times they are only a few sentences long. Looking at bios that have been used in the same context can be a useful guide in determining what to put in your own.
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'biography.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Late Greek biographia , from Greek bi- + -graphia -graphy
1665, in the meaning defined at sense 2
biographize
“Biography.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary , Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/biography. Accessed 28 Sep. 2024.
Kids definition of biography, more from merriam-webster on biography.
Nglish: Translation of biography for Spanish Speakers
Britannica English: Translation of biography for Arabic Speakers
Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about biography
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short for biography , attested from 1954. OED cites a 1925 private letter (published 1975) from Irish playwright Sean O'Casey. Earlier shortened forms were biog (1942), biograph (1865).
1680s, "the histories of individual lives, as a branch of literature," probably from Medieval Latin biographia , from later Greek biographia "description of life" (which was not in classical Greek, bios alone being the word there for it), from Greek bios "life" (from PIE root *gwei- "to live") + graphia "record, account" (see -graphy ).
The meaning "a history of some one person's life" is from 1791. The meaning "life course of any living being" is by 1854. No one-word verb form has become common; biographise / biographize (1800), biography (1844), biograph (1849) have been tried.
also bio-pic , 1946, a contraction of biographical (moving) picture .
Originally pronounced BY-oh-pic like bio + pic , but by late 2010s pronunciation by-OP-ic gained currency on supposition that the first element should be pronounced as in biography .
More to explore.
updated on October 06, 2023
biochemical
biochemistry
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Quick summary.
The Greek root word bio means ‘life.’ Some common English vocabulary words that come from this root word include bio logical, bio graphy, and amphi bi an. One easy word that is helpful in remembering bio is bio logy, or the study of ‘life.’
The Greek root word bio means ‘life,’ and gives rise mostly to words from the realm of the ‘life’ sciences.
We’ve all taken bio logy (or bio ) classes, in which you learn all about ‘life.’ Bio logical processes have to do with the way ‘living’ organisms function. Micro bio logists study small ‘life’ forms, such as bacteria, viruses, and other one-celled organisms.
Speaking of life forms, amphi bi ans, such as frogs and salamanders, can ‘live’ both in water and on land. Amphi bio us military vehicles, such as tanks, can also operate or ‘live’ in both water and on land.
A bio graphy (or bio ) is a book that tells all about the events in someone’s ‘life,’ written by an author other than the subject of the ‘life’ history. An auto bio graphy, on the other hand, is a history of a person’s ‘life’ written by that person.
The adjective aero bi c refers to the oxygen a ‘life’ form requires in order to ‘live.’ Aero bi cs are simply exercises which cause ‘living’ organisms, such as yourself, to breathe faster as your body consumes more oxygen. Anaero bi c exercise almost completely depletes the oxygen from a ‘living’ organism’s body, such as an all-out sprint which leaves you gasping for air!
Sym bio tic organisms ‘live’ together, each needing the other to survive. An example of a mutually beneficial sym bio sis or ‘living’ together is between the clownfish and the anemone (think “Finding Nemo”). In this relationship which increases survival rates, the clownfish gets a protective home, and the anemone gets cleaned by the clownfish.
And just where can living organisms live and thrive? Why, in a bio sphere of course, or those parts of the Earth that support and allow the existence of ‘life.’
You can now add the knowledge of this handy root word bio to your, well, knowledge bio , which will hopefully make the rest of your vocabulary ‘life’ a bit more livable!
The fascinating parts of words.
Morphology is the study of how words are put together by using morphemes, which include prefixes, roots, and suffixes. Parsing the different morphemes in a word reveals meaning and part of speech. For instance, the word “invention” includes the prefix in- + the root vent + the suffix -ion , from which is formed the noun “invention.”
Etymology is that part of linguistics that studies word origins. English vocabulary words are formed from many different sources, especially Latin and Greek. By determining the origins of the morphemes in English words, one is better able to remember and determine the dictionary definitions of words.
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The meaning of BIO is a biography or biographical sketch. How to use bio in a sentence. a biography or biographical sketch… See the full definition Games & Quizzes ... bio-2 of 2 prefix. see bi-entry 2. Synonyms. Noun. biography; life; memoir; See all Synonyms & Antonyms in Thesaurus .
bio-word-forming element, especially in scientific compounds, meaning "life, life and," or "biology, biology and," or "biological, of or pertaining to living organisms or their constituents," from Greek bios "one's life, course or way of living, lifetime" (as opposed to zoe "animal life, organic life"), from PIE root *gwei-"to live.". The correct usage is that in biography, but since c. 1800 ...
3 meanings: → short for biography 1. indicating or involving life or living organisms 2. indicating a human life or career.... Click for more definitions.
A bio graphy (or bio) is a book that tells all about the events in someone's 'life,' written by an author other than the subject of the 'life' history. An auto bio graphy, on the other hand, is a history of a person's 'life' written by that person. The adjective aero bi c refers to the oxygen a 'life' form requires in order ...
The prefix "bio-" means life or living organism. It is often used in words related to biology, such as biography (life story) or biology (study of living organisms).
Examples of words with the prefix 'bio' include 'biostratigraphy' (the study of rock layers and their fossilized remains), 'biographize' (to write a biography), 'bionditional' (relating to two different conditions), 'biotelemetric' (the use of remote sensing to measure biological activity), and 'bioseston' (a combination ...
The earliest known use of the noun biography is in the mid 1600s. OED's earliest evidence for biography is from 1661, in the writing of John Fell, bishop of Oxford. biography is a borrowing from Latin. Etymons: Latin biographia. See etymology.
BIO- meaning: 1. connected with life and living things: 2. connected with life and living things: . Learn more.
Bio definition: biography. . See examples of BIO used in a sentence.
Bio definition: A biography. Origin of Bio Gr < bios, life < IE base *gwei-, to live > quick, L vivere, to live, vita, life, OIr biu, living, Gr bioun, to live, zōion, animal From Webster's New World College Dictionary, 5th Edition From Ancient Greek βίο-(bio-), combining form and stem of βίος (bios, "life" ).. From Wiktionary
The word root and prefix bio means: LIFE or something related to living things. Slide 3: Words that use BIO include: • BIOgraphy • BIOlogy • symBIOtic • BIOdegradable • BIOchemist • antiBIOtic • BIOpsy. Slide 4: BIOGRAPHY Definition: an account of a person's life, often written.
The prefix, bio-, implies of or related to life or living organisms. Words with the Prefix Bio-We created the list of words with the prefix bio- by referencing two dictionaries: Merriam-Webster Children's Dictionary and Merriam-Webster's Intermediate Dictionary. We limited the bio- words to those most appropriate for a child in grades 5 ...
Biography is a root word, in fact. prefixes can be added to it such as the word auto-biography. suffixes can also be added such as biograph-ical. So mostly the word biography is a root.
Definition and Examples. Prefixes are one- to three-syllable affixes added to the beginning of a base word to slightly change its meaning. For example, adding the prefix im- to the base word possible creates a new word, impossible, which means "not possible.". Prefixes are a regular part of English, and understanding them can greatly ...
biography. (n.). 1680s, "the histories of individual lives, as a branch of literature," probably from Medieval Latin biographia, from later Greek biographia "description of life" (which was not in classical Greek, bios alone being the word there for it), from Greek bios "life" (from PIE root *gwei-"to live") + graphia "record, account" (see -graphy).. The meaning "a history of some one person ...
Definition of biography noun in Oxford Advanced American Dictionary. Meaning, pronunciation, picture, example sentences, grammar, usage notes, synonyms and more.
bio- - WordReference English dictionary, questions, discussion and forums. All Free. ... Informal Terms biology: [uncountable] [I had a rough course in bio last term.] bio-, prefix. bio-comes from Greek, where it has the meaning "life.'' This meaning is found in such words as: biodegradable, ...
The meaning of BIOGRAPHY is a usually written history of a person's life. How to use biography in a sentence. So You've Been Asked to Submit a Biography
bio (n.) bio. (n.) short for biography, attested from 1954. OED cites a 1925 private letter (published 1975) from Irish playwright Sean O'Casey. Earlier shortened forms were biog (1942), biograph (1865). also from 1954.
A bio graphy (or bio) is a book that tells all about the events in someone's 'life,' written by an author other than the subject of the 'life' history. An auto bio graphy, on the other hand, is a history of a person's 'life' written by that person. The adjective aero bi c refers to the oxygen a 'life' form requires in order ...