आत्मकथा (aatmakthaa)

noun A compound noun literally 'self-story' -- आत्म (aatm, self) + कथा (kathaa, story/tale) -- meaning 'autobiography.' Single sense, single register.
Sense 1 : autobiography
noun, feminine
Synonyms: स्वजीवनी (svajiivnii, rare)
Frequency: medium
Cultural Note: This is a bookish, literary-register word you'll meet on the cover of a memoir or in a school literature discussion, not in casual chat about someone's life story -- for that, people just say कहानी (kahaanii) or ज़िंदगी की बातें (zindgii kii baaten, 'stories of one's life').
Common Mistakes: 1) Learners sometimes confuse it with जीवनी (jiivnii), which means 'biography' (written by someone else) -- आत्मकथा (aatmakthaa) is specifically self-written, the आत्म (aatm) prefix carrying that 'self' meaning across other words like आत्मविश्वास (aatmvishvaas, self-confidence).
Sample Sentences:
गांधी जी की आत्मकथा का नाम "सत्य के प्रयोग" है। Gandhi's autobiography is titled 'The Story of My Experiments with Truth.'
(gaandhii jii kii aatmakthaa kaa naam "saty ke prayog" hai।)
Register: Neutral -- Mood: Indicative -- Tense: Present -- Voice: Active
उन्होंने अपनी आत्मकथा साठ साल की उम्र में लिखी थी। He wrote his autobiography at the age of sixty.
(unhonne apnii aatmakthaa saath saal kii umr men likhii thii।)
Register: Formal -- Mood: Indicative -- Aspect: Perfective -- Tense: Past -- Voice: Active
यह आत्मकथा अगले महीने प्रकाशित होगी। This autobiography will be published next month.
(yah aatmakthaa agle mahiine prakaashit hogii।)
Register: Formal -- Mood: Indicative -- Tense: Future -- Voice: Passive
बहुत कम लेखक ऐसी ईमानदार आत्मकथा लिखते हैं। Very few writers write such an honest autobiography.
(bahut kam lekhak aisii iimaandaar aatmakthaa likhte hain।)
Register: Literary -- Mood: Indicative -- Aspect: Habitual -- Tense: Present -- Voice: Active
काश उन्होंने अपनी आत्मकथा पूरी की होती, इससे पहले कि उनकी मृत्यु हो गई। I wish he had completed his autobiography before he passed away.
(kaash unhonne apnii aatmakthaa poorii kii hotii, isse pahle ki unkii mrityu ho gaii।)
Register: Literary -- Mood: Counterfactual -- Aspect: Perfective -- Voice: Active
अगर वह अपनी आत्मकथा लिखते, तो हमें उनके जीवन की सच्चाई पता चलती। If he had written his autobiography, we would have known the truth of his life.
(agar vah apnii aatmakthaa likhte, to hamen unke jiivan kii sachchaaii pataa chaltii।)
Register: Literary -- Mood: Counterfactual -- Aspect: Habitual -- Voice: Active
आत्मकथा पढ़ते समय लेखक की सोच को समझने की कोशिश करो। While reading an autobiography, try to understand the writer's thinking.
(aatmakthaa padhte samay lekhak kii soch ko samajhne kii koshish karo।)
Register: Neutral -- Mood: Imperative -- Voice: Active
शायद वे अपनी आत्मकथा में इस घटना का ज़िक्र करें। Perhaps he will mention this incident in his autobiography.
(shaayad ve apnii aatmakthaa men is ghatnaa kaa zikr karen।)
Register: Neutral -- Mood: Subjunctive -- Voice: Active
आत्मकथा में लेखक अपने जीवन की घटनाओं का वर्णन खुद करता है। In an autobiography, the writer describes the events of his own life himself.
(aatmakthaa men lekhak apne jiivan kii ghatnaaon kaa varnan khud kartaa hai।)
Register: Literary -- Mood: Indicative -- Aspect: Habitual -- Tense: Present -- Voice: Active
उनकी आत्मकथा में उनके संघर्ष के दिनों का विस्तार से वर्णन किया गया है। In his autobiography, his days of struggle have been described in detail.
(unkii aatmakthaa men unke sangharsh ke dinon kaa vistaar se varnan kiyaa gayaa hai।)
Register: Formal -- Mood: Indicative -- Aspect: Perfective -- Tense: Present -- Voice: Passive
Morphology
Noun
(sg.f.direct): आत्मकथा (aatmakthaa)
(sg.f.oblique): आत्मकथा (aatmakthaa)
(pl.f.direct): आत्मकथाएँ (aatmakthaaen)
(pl.f.oblique): आत्मकथाओं (aatmakthaaon)