personal

adjective per·son·al \ ˈpərs-nəl , ˈpər-sə-nəl \

Updated on: 8 Apr 2018

Definition of personal

1 : of, relating to, or affecting a particular person : private, individual

personal ambition

personal financial gain

2 a : done in person without the intervention of another; also : proceeding from a single person

b : carried on between individuals directly

a personal interview

3 : relating to the person or body

4 : relating to an individual or an individual's character, conduct, motives, or private affairs often in an offensive manner

a personal insult

5 a : being rational and self-conscious

personal, responsive government is still possible
—John Fischer

b : having the qualities of a person rather than a thing or abstraction

a personal devil

6 : of, relating to, or constituting personal property

a personal estate

7 : denoting grammatical person

8 : intended for private use or use by one person

a personal stereo

See personal defined for English-language learners

See personal defined for kids

Examples of personal in a Sentence

This is just my personal opinion.
I can only tell you what I know from personal experience.
He added his own personal touches to the recipe.
We don't accept personal checks.
He is a personal friend of mine.
She is always concerned about her personal appearance.
We provide each of our customers with personal service.
Golf is a personal interest of mine.
May I ask you a personal question?
That information is very personal, and you have no business asking about it.

Recent Examples of personal from the Web

At the Villa, the severe demeanor, grey uniforms, and robotic obsequiousness one has come to expect at luxury hotels is eschewed in favor of personal charm and humor.

— charles curkin, ELLE Decor, "This Gorgeous Hotel In A Renaissance-Era Convent Will Blow You Away," 4 Apr. 2018
He is accorded a measure of dignity and personal respect but not political power.

— andrea k. mcdaniels, baltimoresun.com, "Martin Luther King Jr.'s legacy still lives on in the work of young Baltimore activists," 4 Apr. 2018
Her tale of uprootedness nods to familiar themes—the quest for status and a sense of belonging, tensions between family ties and personal agency, the fraught search for identity.

— amy weiss-meyer, The Atlantic, "The Deft Inventions of The Parking Lot Attendant," 4 Apr. 2018
The next time an app wants to track your location full-time or a Facebook quiz asks for permission to access the personal information of you and all your Facebook friends, try to get in touch with your inner Appalachian.

— sherry hamby, Scientific American, "Resisting Technology, Appalachian Style," 4 Apr. 2018
There have also been strives in prescribing more personal medications to target individual patients.

— rebecca hazen, Houston Chronicle, "Multiple sclerosis comes in many faces," 4 Apr. 2018
The program covers topics such as unsafe apps, sharing too much personal information, sexting and cyberbullying.

— john benson, cleveland.com, "North Olmsted High School to host social media/internet safety program," 3 Apr. 2018
The actress and activist gets personal about how being adventurous and trying out a new sport changed her perspective.

— Health.com, "The Unexpected Thing America Ferrera Did to Feel More Empowered and Body Confident," 3 Apr. 2018
Very few games have an art style that feels personal.

— julie muncy, WIRED, "Small Talk Is the Cartoony Party Game of My Dreams," 2 Apr. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'personal.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of personal

Middle English, from Anglo-French personel, from Late Latin personalis, from Latin persona

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 14th century

See Words from the same year

personal Synonyms

personal

noun

Definition of personal

1 : a short newspaper paragraph relating to the activities of a person or a group or to personal matters

2 : a short personal communication in a special column of the classified ads section of a newspaper or periodical

3 : personal foul

Recent Examples of personal from the Web

Shows like this are all about spreading visions of the future, through personal, up-close interactions with the coolest concepts and hottest products designers could muster.

— aarian marshall, WIRED, "This Week in the Future of Cars: Back to Normal?," 30 Mar. 2018
Most recently, Craigslist removed all of their personals, citing the legislation as the reason.

— kitty stryker, Teen Vogue, "What the FOSTA/SESTA Anti-Sex Trafficking Bill Means," 27 Mar. 2018
So much writing about personal finance focuses on the basics, like sticking to a budget or paying off debt.

— kristin wong, The Cut, "How to Cope When Debt Damages Your Mental Health," 27 Mar. 2018
The full moon in Virgo on March 1 shines a bright light on your personal and shared resources.

— aliza kelly faragher, Allure, "What Your Sign's March 2018 Horoscope Predictions Mean for You," 28 Feb. 2018
The East Aurora School District 131 assistant superintendent of finance has resigned effective at the end of the current school year. Mike Prombo is set to leave June 30 for reasons listed as personal in a school board personnel report.

— sarah freishtat, Aurora Beacon-News, "East Aurora finance leader leaving," 20 Mar. 2018
Gillespie contributed some valuable minutes against Alabama in the first half after Brunson sat for 10 minutes with two personals, forcing a turnover off Crimson Tide guard Collin Sexton and playing well at the point.

— joe juliano, Philly.com, "Villanova hopes a younger roster can match previous March Madness success," 18 Mar. 2018
Inevitably, the confluence of personal and professional issues poses significant challenges.

— david wiegand, San Francisco Chronicle, "‘Mozart’ gets personal in masterful new season," 12 Feb. 2018
This wasn’t your typical high school football rivalry; this was as personal as personal gets, with layers and layers of bitterness.

— robert klemko, SI.com, "Doug Pederson Has Already Won an Underdog Super Bowl—As a High School Coach," 30 Jan. 2018

First Known Use of personal

1860

PERSONAL Defined for English Language Learners

personal

adjective

Definition of personal for English Language Learners

: belonging or relating to a particular person
: made or designed to be used by one person
—used to describe someone whose job involves working for or helping a particular person

PERSONAL Defined for Kids

personal

adjective per·son·al \ ˈpər-sə-nəl \

Definition of personal for Students

1 : of, relating to, or belonging to an individual human being : not public : not general

personal property

2 : made or done by a particular individual and not by someone acting for him or her

The mayor made a personal appearance.

3 : of the body

Take precautions for personal safety.

4 : relating to someone's private matters

May I ask you a personal question?

5 : intended for or given to one particular individual

I received personal service.

6 : relating to a particular individual or his or her qualities often in a way that is hurtful

I took the remark as a personal insult.

—

personally

adverb

Law Dictionary

personal

adjective per·son·al

legal Definition of personal

1 : of, relating to, or affecting a person: as

a : of, relating to, or based on the existence or presence of a person — see also personal injury, personal jurisdiction at jurisdiction

b : of, relating to, or restricted to a natural person and his or her rights, obligations, affairs, assets, or lifetime

refused to disclose personal information

released on personal recognizance

2 : of, relating to, or constituting personal property

personal effects

— see also personal property at property — compare real

—

personally

adverb

Learn More about personal

Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for personal Spanish Central: Translation of personal Nglish: Translation of personal for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of personal for Arabic speakers

Seen and Heard

What made you want to look up personal? Please tell us where you read or heard it (including the quote, if possible).

show

personal

Definition of personal

Examples of personal in a Sentence

Recent Examples of personal from the Web

Origin and Etymology of personal

personal Synonyms

Synonyms

Antonyms

Near Antonyms

Related Words

personal

Definition of personal

Recent Examples of personal from the Web

First Known Use of personal

Phrases Related to PERSONAL

Related Phrases

PERSONAL Defined for English Language Learners

personal

Definition of personal for English Language Learners

PERSONAL Defined for Kids

personal

Definition of personal for Students

personally

Law Dictionary

personal

legal Definition of personal

personally

Learn More about personal

Seen and Heard

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Words at Play

Ask the Editors

Word Games

Going Greek: 7 Words from the Greek Alphabet

'Preventive' or 'Preventative'?

Odd Habits and Quirks Quiz

Trending: Trump: Den of Thieves and 'Lowlifes'

2017 Word of the Year: Behind the Scenes