privacy

Language: en

🇬🇧 /ˈpraɪvəsi/ 🇺🇸 /ˈpraɪvəsiː/

📖 Definitions

  1. noun
    The state or condition of being free from being observed or disturbed by other people; seclusion.; The right to keep personal information, communications, and activities confidential and free from unauthorized access or intrusion.; A state of secrecy or confidentiality; the quality of being kept hidden from public knowledge.; A private or secluded place; a retreat away from others.; Freedom from public attention or scrutiny, especially for public figures.

🔗 Details

Word forms

uncountable

Collocations

invasion of privacyright to privacyprivacy policyprivacy settingsexpectation of privacybreach of privacy

Derivatives

privateprivatelyprivatizeprivatizationprivationprivy

Synonyms

seclusionsolitudeconfidentialityisolationretirement

Antonyms

publicityexposureopenness

Commonly confused

secrecy
EN: 'Privacy' is the right to be free from unwanted observation; 'secrecy' is the deliberate concealment of information.
seclusion
EN: 'Seclusion' emphasizes physical isolation from others; 'privacy' is broader and includes freedom from intrusion in general.

Spelling tips

EN: Remember 'privacy' ends in '-acy', not '-icy' or '-acey'. It is derived from 'private' but the suffix changes to '-acy'.

💬 Examples

  1. She valued her privacy and rarely let anyone into her home.

  2. The new data protection law strengthens citizens' privacy rights.

  3. The negotiations were conducted in strict privacy.

  4. He sought the privacy of the countryside to finish writing his novel.

  5. After years in the spotlight, the actress longed for some privacy.