privy

See also: přivý

English

Alternative forms

• privie (obsolete)

Etymology

From Middle English pryvy, prive, from Old French privé (“private”), from Latin prīvātus (“deprived”), perfect passive participle of prīvō (“I bereave, deprive; I free, release”). Doublet of private.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈpɹɪvi/

  • Audio (Southern England)

    (file)

• Audio (US)

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɪvi

Adjective

privy (comparative more privy, superlative most privy)

1. (now chiefly historical) Private, exclusive; not public; one's own. [from early 13th c.]

   The king retreated to his privy chamber.

   the privy purse

2. (now rare, archaic) Secret, hidden, concealed.
   • 1967, William Styron, The Confessions of Nat Turner, Vintage, published 2004, page 82:

     Nonetheless, in the dark and privy stillness of our minds there are few of us who are not still haunted by worrisome doubts.

3. With knowledge of; party to; let in on. [from late 14th c.]

   He was privy to the discussions.

   • April 5 2022, Tina Brown, “How Princess Diana’s Dance With the Media Impacted William and Harry”, in Vanity Fair‎^[1]:

     William understood Diana more but idealized her less. He was privy to her volatile love life. He knew the tabloids made her life hell, but he also knew she colluded with them.

     adapted from the book The Palace Papers, published 2022 by Penguin Books

Derived terms

• privily
• priviness
• privy council
• privy parts

Derived terms

• privy councillor
• privy-house
• privy seal

 

Translations

private, exclusive, particular

• Chinese:

  Mandarin: please add this translation if you can

• Dutch: privé (nl), uniek (nl), exclusief (nl)
• Finnish: salainen (fi), yksityinen (fi)
• French: privé (fr), unique (fr), exclusif (fr)
• German: geheim (de)
• Hungarian: magán (hu), saját (hu), titkos (hu)
• Macedonian: ли́чен (líčen), и́склучив (ísklučiv), при́ватен (prívaten)
• Portuguese: privado (pt) m, exclusivo (pt) m, particular (pt), privativo (pt), confidencial (pt)
• Russian: в ку́рсе (ru) (v kúrse), ча́стный (ru) (částnyj), ли́чный (ru) (líčnyj), прива́тный (ru) (privátnyj)

with knowledge of; party to; let in on

• Bulgarian: посветен (bg) (posveten), осведомен (bg) (osvedomen)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: please add this translation if you can

• Dutch: ingeweid, medeplichtig (nl)
• Finnish: tietoinen (fi), perillä (fi)
• French: instruit (fr), complice (fr)
• German: eingeweiht (de)
• Greek: κοινωνός (el) (koinonós)
• Hungarian: beavatott (hu), tudomása van (hu), tudomással bír
• Macedonian: у́патен (úpaten), по́светен (pósveten)
• Persian: محرم (fa) (mahram)
• Russian: в ку́рсе (ru) (v kúrse), посвящённый (ru) (posvjaščónnyj), осведомлённый (ru) (osvedomljónnyj)
• Spanish: cómplice (es)
• Swedish: invigd (sv)

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Translations to be checked

• Arabic: خاص (ḵāṣ), سِرِّيّ (sirriyy)

Noun

privy (plural privies)

1. An outdoor facility for urination and defecation, whether open (latrine) or enclosed (outhouse).
2. A lavatory: a room with a toilet.
3. A toilet: a fixture used for urination and defecation.
   • 1864 January 26, J.G. Lindsay, letter to P.P.L. O'Connel, §8:

     Arconum—I found two chairs wanting in the gentlemen's room, and the bath room attached applied to other purposes... the privies and urinaries clean...

4. (law) A partaker; one having an interest in an action, contract, etc. to which he is not himself a party.

Synonyms

• (latrine, outhouse, or lavatory): See Thesaurus:bathroom
• (fixture): See Thesaurus:toilet

Derived terms

• privy house

Translations

latrine — see latrine

outhouse — see outhouse

lavatory or toilet — see toilet

a partaker

• Bulgarian: заинтересовано лице n (zainteresovano lice)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: please add this translation if you can

• Finnish: intressitaho
• Hungarian: érdektárs
• Maori: torohē