memoir
mem·oir/ˈmɛmˌwɑɹ/noun
memoir is spelled M-E-M-O-I-R: 6 letters and 2 syllables (mem·oir). It appears 5.9 times per million words in written English, the 10,028th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, memoir means “An autobiography; a book describing the personal experiences of an author” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of memoir is memoirs.
How many letters and syllables are in memoir?
| Letters | 6: M-E-M-O-I-R |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2: mem·oir |
| In writing | 5.9 times per million words; the 10,028th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is memoir?
Memoir appears 5.9 times per million words in written English, the 10,028th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce memoir?
- UK /ˈmɛmˌwɑː/
- US /ˈmɛmˌwɑɹ/
- Australia /ˈmemˌwɐː/
Memoir has 2 syllables, split mem·oir in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-memoir.wav, LL-Q1860_(eng)-Wodencafe-memoir.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of memoir
- memoirs plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does memoir mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
An autobiography; a book describing the personal experiences of an author.
When I retire, I'm going to write my memoirs.
- 2
A biography; a book describing the experiences of a subject from personal knowledge of the subject or from sources with personal knowledge of the subject.
James wrote a memoir of his grandmother shortly after she passed away.
- 3
Any form of narrative describing the personal experiences of a writer.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Memoir in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense book describing the personal experiences of an author:
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does memoir come from?
Borrowed from French mémoire, from Middle French memoire, from Old French memoire, from Latin memoria. Doublet of memoria and memory.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).