# privacy

Pronunciation: US say "PRY-vuh-see" /ˈpɹaɪ.və.si/; UK say "PRIV-uh-see" /ˈpɹɪv.ə.si/

## Noun

1. The state of being secluded from the sight, presence, or knowledge of other people.
   - Simple: Being away from other people, so they cannot see, hear, or bother you.
   - _The high hedges around the garden give the family complete privacy._
   - _Hotel guests expect a certain amount of privacy in their rooms._
2. The condition of being left alone in one's personal life, free of unwanted or excessive intrusion.
   - Simple: Being free from people bothering you in your personal life.
   - _Constant calls from work left him with little privacy in the evenings._
   - _Neighbors who drop by unannounced can really invade your privacy._
3. The condition of being protected from surveillance, public scrutiny, harmful publicity, and the release of personal information, typically by governments or private organizations.
   - Simple: Being protected from having your personal information watched, collected, or shared without permission.
   - _Privacy advocates challenged the agency's mass collection of phone records._
   - _Strong encryption helps protect users' privacy from corporate surveillance._

## Noun

4. The state of keeping something secret; secrecy. *(obsolete)*
   - Simple: The act of keeping something hidden or secret from other people.
5. A place where one can be secluded from others. *(obsolete)*
   - Simple: A quiet, hidden place where someone can be alone.
6. A personal or private matter, one that concerns only oneself. *(obsolete)*
   - Simple: Something personal that is one's own business and not for others to know.
   - _The letter dealt with certain privacies the family never spoke of openly._
   - _She guarded that small privacy as something no friend had a right to know._
7. A legal relationship between parties arising from their mutual interest or participation in a transaction or contract. *(obsolete)*
   - Simple: A legal connection between people who share the same deal or contract.

## Origin

Formed from "private" combined with the suffix "-cy".

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/privacy (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).