Definitions for author
ˈɔ θərau·thor

Princeton's WordNet(4.33 / 3 votes)Rate this definition:

1. writer, authornoun

   writes (books or stories or articles or the like) professionally (for pay)

2. generator, source, authorverb

   someone who originates or causes or initiates something

   "he was the generator of several complaints"

3. authorverb

   be the author of

   "She authored this play"

Wiktionary(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. authornoun

   The originator or creator of a work, especially of a literary composition.

2. authornoun

   Someone who writes books for a living; a bookwright.

3. authorverb

   To create a work as its author.

4. Etymology: From autour, from autor, from auctor, from augeo. The is unetymological as there is no in the original Latin spelling. This may be from the spelling autheur.

Samuel Johnson's Dictionary(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. AUTHORnoun

   Etymology: auctor, Lat.

   1. The first beginner or mover of any thing; he to whom any thing owes its original.

   That law, the author and observer whereof is one only God, to be blessed for ever. Richard Hooker, b. i.

   The author of that which causeth another thing to be, is author of that thing also which thereby is caused. Richard Hooker, b. iii.

   I’ll never
   Be such a gosling to obey instinct; but stand
   As if a man was author of himself,
   And knew no other kin. William Shakespeare, Coriolanus.

   Thou art my father, thou my author, thou
   My being gav’st me; whom should I obey,
   But thee? John Milton, Paradise Lost, b. ii.

   But Faunus came from Picus, Picus drew
   His birth from Saturn, if records be true.
   Thus king Latinus, in the third degree,
   Had Saturn author of his family. John Dryden, Æneid vii.

   If the worship of false Gods had not blinded the heathen, instead of teaching to worship the sun, and dead heroes, they would have taught us to worship our true Author and benefactor, as their ancestors did under the government of Noah and his sons, before they corrupted themselves. Isaac Newton, Opticks.

   2. The efficient; he that effects or produces any thing.

   That which is the strength of their amity, shall prove the immediate author of their variance. William Shakespeare, Antony and Cleopat.

   Now while the tortur’d savage turns around,
   And flings about his foam, impatient of the wound;
   The wound’s great author close at hand provokes
   His rage. John Dryden, Fables.

   From his loins
   New authors of dissention spring; from him
   Two branches, that in hosting long contend
   For sov’reign sway. Philips.

   3. The first writer of any thing; distinct from the translator or compiler.

   To stand upon every point in particulars, belongeth to the first author of the story. 2 Macc. ii. 30.

   An author has the choice of his own thoughts and words, which a translator has not. Dryden.

   4. A writer in general.

   Yet their own authors faithfully affirm,
   That the land Salike lies in Germany. William Shakespeare, Henry V.

Webster Dictionary(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. Authornoun

   the beginner, former, or first mover of anything; hence, the efficient cause of a thing; a creator; an originator

2. Authornoun

   one who composes or writes a book; a composer, as distinguished from an editor, translator, or compiler

3. Authornoun

   the editor of a periodical

4. Authornoun

   an informant

5. Authorverb

   to occasion; to originate

6. Authorverb

   to tell; to say; to declare

7. Etymology: [OE. authour, autour, OF. autor, F. auteur, fr. L. auctor, sometimes, but erroneously, written autor or author, fr. augere to increase, to produce. See Auction, n.]

Freebase(4.50 / 2 votes)Rate this definition:

1. Author

   An author is broadly defined as "the person who originated or gave existence to anything" and whose authorship determines responsibility for what was created. Narrowly defined, an author is the originator of any written work.

Chambers 20th Century Dictionary(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. Author

   awth′or, n. one who originates or brings anything into being: a beginner or first mover of any action or state of things: the writer of an original book: elliptically for an author's writings: one's authority for something: an informant:—fem. Auth′oress.—adjs. Authō′rial, Auth′orish; Authorīs′able.—n. Authorisā′tion.—v.t. Auth′orise, to give authority to: to sanction: to permit: to justify: to establish by authority.—adj. Auth′orless, anonymous.—ns. Auth′orling, a petty author; Auth′orship, Auth′oring, Auth′orism, state or quality of being an author. [Through Fr. from L. auctor—augēre, auctum, to cause things to increase, to produce.]

Matched Categories

1. • Authorship
   • Communicator
   • Write

British National Corpus

1. Spoken Corpus Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'author' in Spoken Corpus Frequency: #2298

2. Nouns Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'author' in Nouns Frequency: #683

How to pronounce author?

1. Alex

   US English

   David

   US English

   Mark

   US English

   Daniel

   British

   Libby

   British

   Mia

   British

   Karen

   Australian

   Hayley

   Australian

   Natasha

   Australian

   Veena

   Indian

   Priya

   Indian

   Neerja

   Indian

   Zira

   US English

   Oliver

   British

   Wendy

   British

   Fred

   US English

   Tessa

   South African

How to say author in sign language?

Numerology

1. Chaldean Numerology

   The numerical value of author in Chaldean Numerology is: 7

2. Pythagorean Numerology

   The numerical value of author in Pythagorean Numerology is: 2

Examples of author in a Sentence

1. George Bernard Shaw:

   My main reason for adopting literature as a profession was that, as the author is never seen by his clients, he need not dress respectably.

2. Marquis de Sade:

   There is no God, Nature sufficeth unto herself; in no wise hath she need of an author.

3. Cynthia Peterson:

   I'm devastated. It's hard when we lose any of our patrons, but Alter was an author and he has a huge story to tell and he wanted it told, it meant the world to him to educate all of Oregon. We all adored him, and this is a huge loss.

4. Steven Rinella:

   I started out as a magazine writer, then author, now I’m a podcaster and TV host.

5. Gilbert Keith Chesterton:

   A good novel tells you the truth about its hero but a bad novel tells you the truth about its author.

Popularity rank by frequency of use