privy
adjective
- allowed to know
noun
No English definition recorded for this entry.
L325935 on Wikidata ↗Wiktionary
Pronunciation: /ˈpɹɪvi/
adj
Etymology: From Middle English pryvy, prive, from Old French privé (“private”), from Latin prīvātus (“deprived”), perfect passive participle of prīvō (“to bereave, deprive; to free, release”). Doublet of private.
- Private, exclusive; not public; one's own.
“The king retreated to his privy chamber.”
“the privy purse”
- Secret, hidden, concealed.
“Nonetheless, in the dark and privy stillness of our minds there are few of us who are not still haunted by worrisome doubts.”
- With knowledge of; party to; let in on.
“He was privy to the discussions.”
“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.”
noun
Etymology: From Middle English pryvy, prive, from Old French privé (“private”), from Latin prīvātus (“deprived”), perfect passive participle of prīvō (“to bereave, deprive; to free, release”). Doublet of private.
- An outdoor facility for urination and defecation, whether open (latrine) or enclosed (outhouse).
- A lavatory: a room with a toilet.
“To counteract these degrading effects he advised that the privy should be in every house the room nearest to heaven, […].”
- A toilet: a fixture used for urination and defecation.
“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...”
- A partaker; one having an interest in an action, contract, etc. to which he is not himself a party.