biographical

American  

[bahy-uh-graf-i-kuhl] / ˌbaɪ əˈgræf ɪ kəl /

Also biographic

adjective

1. of or relating to a person's life.

   He's gathering biographical data for his book on Milton.

2. pertaining to or containing biography.

   a biographical dictionary.

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Other Word Forms

• biographically adverb
• nonbiographical adjective
• nonbiographically adverb
• pseudobiographic adjective
• pseudobiographical adjective
• pseudobiographically adverb
• quasi-biographical adjective
• quasi-biographically adverb
• semibiographic adjective
• semibiographical adjective
• semibiographically adverb
• unbiographical adjective
• unbiographically adverb

Etymology

Origin of biographical

First recorded in 1730–40; biograph(y) + -ical

Explanation

Anything biographical has to do with the story of someone's life. If you're reading a biography of Margaret Mead, you might enjoy learning biographical details, like that she was the oldest of five children. A biography is a book about someone's life. Anything biographical can be from a biography, as in an actual book about someone, or just facts from a person’s life. Biographical information could be where someone is from, where they grew up, where they went to college, or when they became famous. Biographies are usually written about famous people, but everyone has biographical details about their own lives, too.

Example Sentences

But it too depends on the ability of actors to embody the biographical weight of its finely detailed characters.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 1, 2026

"And actually, I'm not embarrassed. I've never really felt uncomfortable talking about a biographical detail."

From BBC • Mar. 21, 2026

Her achievements became widely known only in 2018, when she was 87 and mentioned in a biographical note for her sorority, Alpha Kappa Alpha, that she had been part of a GPS-development team.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 26, 2026

Wildly different genres will compete for that award, which pits "Hamnet" against commercial success "Bridget Jones, Mad About the Boy" and biographical film "I Swear".

From Barron's • Feb. 22, 2026

While mopping the operating rooms of the medical research institute, I got the notion of writing a series of biographical sketches of Negro Communists.

From "Black Boy" by Richard Wright