life story
life story — noun
1. the complete set of events, relationships, and experiences that a person has liv
the complete set of events, relationships, and experiences that a person has lived through from birth to the present, considered as a whole — for example, growing up in a particular place, the work they did, the people they loved, and the challenges they faced.
The elderly woman's life story included raising five children alone after her husband passed away.
possessive + life story: someone's life story
Naoko's life story included losing her home in the Kobe earthquake and rebuilding from nothing.
possessive: someone's life story included + [life events]
Caleb's life story began in a fishing village where his grandfather taught him to sail.
The documentary showed how the musician's life story influenced every song she wrote.
文法句型
possessive + life story
someone's life story
用法筆記
Frequently used with a possessive determiner (her life story, my life story). This sense refers to the actual lived events, not a written or spoken account of them — contrast with sense 2.
常見錯誤
2. a spoken or written account that someone gives of the events of their own life,
a spoken or written account that someone gives of the events of their own life, arranged as a narrative that others can listen to or read — for example, a book a person writes about their childhood and career, or a long conversation in which they describe their background to a listener.
The journalist recorded the miner's life story and published it in a local newspaper.
verb pattern: record + life story
Each student interviewed an older neighbour and wrote that person's life story for class.
verb pattern: write + life story
Zuri listened to her grandmother's life story as the old woman described the war years.
The radio show invites ordinary people to share their life stories on air.
- autobiography
specifically a written book about one's own life; more formal and narrower than 'life story'
- memoir
a written account focusing on a particular period or theme, not the whole life
- biography
an account of someone's life written by another person
文法句型
tell + life story
write + life story
hear + life story
用法筆記
Common with verbs of telling, writing, recording, or hearing. Unlike sense 1, this sense always implies a narrative act — someone shaping events into a story for an audience.
常見錯誤
3. a friendly, informal way of referring to someone's background and personal histo
a friendly, informal way of referring to someone's background and personal history, used when asking a person about their past or summing up what they have done so far — for instance, a new colleague at work might say 'So, what is your life story?' as a way of starting a getting-to-know-you chat.
The taxi driver asked the passenger for his life story only minutes into the ride.
colloquial pattern: ask for + life story
When Lucía introduced herself, the host said, 'Tell us your life story — we want to know everything!'
imperative: tell + life story
The journalist's simple question, 'What is your life story?', made the old man smile and begin to talk.
A party guest asked Beatriz for her life story before she could say her name.
- background
more formal and limited to facts like education and work; less personal than 'life story'
- personal history
slightly more formal; used in official contexts
文法句型
possessive + life story
what's your life story
用法筆記
Common in informal Q-and-A situations. The phrase has a slightly exaggerated, conversational tone — asking for someone's 'life story' is a friendly way of asking about their background, not a demand for a full autobiography. Less natural in formal writing.