personal

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

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

Inside this bunker, the tragedy feels both intensely personal and strangely distant.

— matt sedensky, The Seattle Times, "‘Hell’s breaking loose’: A 911 center under siege by Harvey," 30 Aug. 2017
The officer said his weapon was on the hood of his personal vehicle.

— staff report, Daily Southtown, "Police: Off-duty Chicago cop involved in fatal shooting in Hazel Crest," 30 Aug. 2017
The union has sought to have players' appeals in cases under the personal conduct policy and integrity-of-the-game rules resolved via outside arbitration.

— mark maske, chicagotribune.com, "A glimpse into the uncertain futures of Ezekiel Elliott and Vontaze Burfict," 29 Aug. 2017
Sources confirmed an NFL Network report that Elliott testified to league arbitrator Harold Henderson in his attempt to get the six-game personal conduct suspension for domestic violence against former girlfriend Tiffany Thompson reduced or vacated.

— clarence e. hill jr., star-telegram, "Elliott testifies at appeal; Jerry Jones maintains NFL has no evidence," 29 Aug. 2017
The writer and director, Cameron Crowe, said on his personal blog that the character was based on an actual mixed-race, part-Hawaiian redhead, but apologized nonetheless.

— liam stack, New York Times, "Ed Skrein, Facing Criticism, Backs Out of Playing Asian Character in ‘Hellboy’," 28 Aug. 2017
Gaining creative control leads to the kind of independence that encourages each member’s personal ambitions.

— anne t. donahue, Cosmopolitan, "5 Reasons to Worry Fifth Harmony Will Be the Group’s Last Album," 25 Aug. 2017
Such talks are unlikely to yield a close personal relationship between the two leaders.

— Washington Post, "Trump-McConnell feud threatens Republican agenda," 23 Aug. 2017
Forget about a dog house because this pup has his own personal room—

— katina beniaris, Country Living, "This Man Built His Dog the Coziest Bedroom Under the Stairs," 23 Aug. 2017

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

Synonyms

idiomatic, individualized, particular, patented, peculiar, individual, personalized, private, privy, separate, singular, subjective, unique

Antonyms

general, generic, popular, public, shared, universal

Related Words

characteristic, distinctive, intimate; identifying, idiosyncratic; especial, express, special, specific; independent, nonconformist, self-directed, self-sufficient; custom, customized, specialized

Near Antonyms

broad, prevailing, prevalent, widespread; common, normal, regular, typical

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

The former Italian colony routinely ranks last among nations in personal and press freedom.

— Washington Post, "Qatar crisis shakes East Africa, a home to Gulf militaries," 30 Aug. 2017
Age: 34 Post: Founder and CEO of Stitch Fix Personal: Lives in San Francisco with her husband and their 9-month-old baby.

— tracey lien, The Seattle Times, "Stitch Fix founder built one of the few successful e-commerce subscription services," 18 June 2017
Age: 34 Post: Founder and CEO of Stitch Fix Personal: Lives in San Francisco with her husband and their 9-month-old baby.

— tracey lien, The Seattle Times, "Stitch Fix founder built one of the few successful e-commerce subscription services," 18 June 2017
Personal: Also considered attending Kentucky and Ohio State.

— oregonian/oregonlive sports, OregonLive.com, "'Blazer Banter' event offers fans a chance to talk Trail Blazers basketball with reporters on Wednesday," 12 June 2017
Painted him as the picture of personal and professional integrity.

— kevin scarbinsky, AL.com, "Only Nick Saban has more support than Hugh Freeze," 11 June 2017
Backlund, 67, mentioned his autobiography, covering 66 years of personal and professional life.

— jim varsallone, miamiherald, "Long walk home a turning point for WWE alum Bob Backlund," 22 May 2017
Example: Who would post an ad on the personals page of a local newspaper?

— kim komando, USA TODAY, "20 things we don’t do anymore because of technology," 5 May 2017
Personal: Lives in Pine- crest with husband, former Miami U.S. Attorney Dexter Lehtinen.

— by michael vasquez, miamiherald, "How Ros-Lehtinen found a way to connect with Hispanics, Jews and everyone else," 30 Apr. 2017

First Known Use of personal

1860

PERSONAL Defined for English Language Learners

personal

play

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

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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

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personal

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PERSONAL Defined for English Language Learners

personal

Definition of personal for English Language Learners

PERSONAL Defined for Kids

personal

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personal

legal Definition of personal

personally

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