An autograph is a person's signature, especially when given as a keepsake by someone famous. When a baseball player signs their name on a ball after a game, that's their autograph. When an author signs the inside cover of their book, they're giving you their autograph.

Before cameras and smartphones made photographs common, autographs were one of the main ways fans could get a personal memento from someone they admired.

Collecting autographs has been popular for centuries. People save autographed baseballs, books, posters, and photographs. Some autographs become extremely valuable: a signed letter from Abraham Lincoln or an autographed Beatles album might be worth thousands of dollars.

The word can also be used as a verb. A fan might ask their favorite soccer player to autograph their jersey, or a teacher might autograph copies of a book they wrote. When you get something autographed, you're getting proof that you met someone and they took a moment to connect with you personally.