PRIVATELY Synonyms: 28 Similar and Opposite Words

privately

adverb

Definition of privately

as in secretly

in a manner intended to prevent knowledge or awareness by others she confided to me privately that she was considering divorce

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of privately The individual feedback goes to the person first, privately, the way a coach talks to an athlete between plays. — Vivek Thomas, Forbes.com, 2 Sep. 2026 People close to Newsom privately speculated that the culprit might be a foreign power looking to undermine the California governor’s seemingly inevitable 2028 presidential campaign. — Max Tani, semafor.com, 2 Sep. 2026 The Madonna of the Yarnwinder had been privately owned for more than two decades before appearing at the Met. — Miami Herald, 1 Sep. 2026 What’s unclear right now if that API and publicly available Steam2 server content were accessed recently or if this weekend’s leak represents content that was privately archived before the 2013 server transition and is just now being made public. — Kyle Orland, ArsTechnica, 30 Aug. 2026 Dolly Parton has been privately laid to rest, a member of her family has confirmed. — Brendan Morrow, USA Today, 30 Aug. 2026 Although no policy moves are made at the conference, Jackson Hole gives policymakers an opportunity to compare notes and debate ideas privately in a convivial atmosphere. — Paul Wachtel, The Conversation, 28 Aug. 2026 The most recent 2025 sale, which sparked the export ban, was privately brokered by Christie’s. — Maximilíano Durón, ARTnews.com, 28 Aug. 2026 The land was privately owned by Dennis Beaman, according to the Sacramento County Assessor’s Office. — Camryn Dadey, Sacbee.com, 28 Aug. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for privately

Adverb

Isshin disapproves of the use of the Dragon’s Heritage and secretly helps Wolf rescue Kuro by directing his doctor, Emma, to tip off Wolf about Kuro’s location.

— Aman Kumar, Encyclopedia Britannica, 27 Aug. 2026
The effect of the wealth consolidation carefully, and secretly, orchestrated by the SEC and Big 10 has been not catastrophic to those not in these respective leagues, but at least cataclysmic.

— Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 26 Aug. 2026