semi-autobiographical
adjective
semi-au·to·bio·graph·i·cal
ˌse-mē-ˌȯ-tə-ˌbī-ə-ˈgra-fi-kəl 
ˌse-ˌmī-,
-mi-
variants
or less commonly semiautobiographical
: partly autobiography and partly fiction : being a fictionalized account of the author's life
a semi-autobiographical novel/film
… James Herriott's semiautobiographical story of his return from WWII to family and friends.—
TV Guide
TV GuideThe play is a convincing picture of a brief but powerful relationship, based on Owen's copious letters and the semi-autobiographical account of Sassoon's George Sherston.—Simon Berry
Simon BerryPedro Almodóvar's most recent drama is one of his most personal: a semi-autobiographical study of an aging, isolated filmmaker who reconnects with an estranged colleague … and starts reassessing his own life.—Norman Wilner
Norman WilnerIn this semiautobiographical take on her own life, [Pamela] Adlon plays "Sam," a working actress and single parent in Los Angeles.—Kit Steinkellner
Kit Steinkellner
also
: of, relating to, or in the style of a semi-autobiographical work
a semi-autobiographical protagonist/character/role
Through semiautobiographical storytelling, Jenna Dawn Maclellan's project will address the challenges of daily life in the North … —The Sudbury Star
The Sudbury Star The acclaimed artist … is known for the semi-autobiographical nature of his work, which riffs on his own youth in the Vancouver suburb of Port Coquitlam. —Guy Dixon
Guy Dixon Is this all meant to be a semi-autobiographical comment on what fame does to relationships, since [Darren] Aronofsky and [Jennifer] Lawrence are an item in real life? —Ryan Lambie
Ryan Lambie Examples of semi-autobiographical in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
The emotional semi-autobiographical story follows siblings Violeta and Eva, who live with their mother but travel to New Mexico every summer to spend time with their loving but unpredictable father, navigating the messy, complex relationship from adolescence to adulthood.
—Jill Goldsmith, Deadline, 20 Sep. 2024
To commemorate the Oscar-winning filmmaker’s honor, the theater showed a screening of his semi-autobiographical film, Crooklyn.
—Tatiana Tenreyro, The Hollywood Reporter, 13 Sep. 2024
Popular on Variety The book is a darkly comic semi-autobiographical work following the journey of disillusioned anti-hero Ferdinand Bardamu across decades.
—Elsa Keslassy, Variety, 9 Sep. 2024
Another local Sunderland lad, Tom A. Smith, a zestful up-and-coming northern rocker who tours with his band, will play Charlie McGarvey, the semi-autobiographical Stewart character.
—Baz Bamigboye, Deadline, 13 Aug. 2024
The Spielberg siblings have shared a close bond since childhood
Steven Spielberg’s semi-autobiographical film, The Fabelmans, recounted his beginnings as a filmmaker while examining how his family shaped his journey.
—Melissa Girimonte, Peoplemag, 4 Aug. 2024
The semi-autobiographical film hits on a familiar emotion for Wang.
—Kimmy Yam, NBC News, 24 July 2024
Then there’s filmmaker Vera Drew’s new semi-autobiographical film The People’s Joker, which utilizes the character to tell a trans coming-of-age tale and satirize the absurdist, often-hollow promises of superhero films and the mainstream comedy scene in one fell swoop.
—Abby Monteil, Them, 23 July 2024
Their love story, however, is plagued by Anne’s memories of her incarceration and her fear of being captured, in this 1965 semi-autobiographical book.
—Carly Tagen-Dye, Peoplemag, 22 July 2024
Jill Goldsmith, Deadline, 20 Sep. 2024
To commemorate the Oscar-winning filmmaker’s honor, the theater showed a screening of his semi-autobiographical film, Crooklyn.
—Tatiana Tenreyro, The Hollywood Reporter, 13 Sep. 2024
Popular on Variety The book is a darkly comic semi-autobiographical work following the journey of disillusioned anti-hero Ferdinand Bardamu across decades.
—Elsa Keslassy, Variety, 9 Sep. 2024
Another local Sunderland lad, Tom A. Smith, a zestful up-and-coming northern rocker who tours with his band, will play Charlie McGarvey, the semi-autobiographical Stewart character.
—Baz Bamigboye, Deadline, 13 Aug. 2024
The Spielberg siblings have shared a close bond since childhood
Steven Spielberg’s semi-autobiographical film, The Fabelmans, recounted his beginnings as a filmmaker while examining how his family shaped his journey.
—Melissa Girimonte, Peoplemag, 4 Aug. 2024
The semi-autobiographical film hits on a familiar emotion for Wang.
—Kimmy Yam, NBC News, 24 July 2024
Then there’s filmmaker Vera Drew’s new semi-autobiographical film The People’s Joker, which utilizes the character to tell a trans coming-of-age tale and satirize the absurdist, often-hollow promises of superhero films and the mainstream comedy scene in one fell swoop.
—Abby Monteil, Them, 23 July 2024
Their love story, however, is plagued by Anne’s memories of her incarceration and her fear of being captured, in this 1965 semi-autobiographical book.
—Carly Tagen-Dye, Peoplemag, 22 July 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'semi-autobiographical.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near semi-autobiographical
Cite this Entry
“Semi-autobiographical.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/semi-autobiographical. Accessed 5 Oct. 2024.
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