as in personally
in person and usually privately
met tête-à-tête with the student's parents to discuss his disciplinary problems in class
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in chat
friendly, informal conversation or an instance of this
had a quick tête-à-tête with my neighbor before heading off to work
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Recent Examples of tête-à-tête
Bloomberg, Mercury News, 30 Jan. 2026
Told mostly through dialogue, Konfidenz is an intensely psychological tete-a-tete about a woman who receives a phone call from a stranger claiming to be her friend, but soon is revealed to have intimate and dangerous knowledge about her life.
—Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 6 Jan. 2026
Social outings, sports events and fun activities with kids plus romantic tete-a-tetes are tops on your menu.
—Georgia Nicols, Denver Post, 5 Jan. 2026
Texas' initial redistricting saga launched a national tete-a-tete, inspiring other states to redraw their own maps.
—Brittany Shepherd, ABC News, 3 Dec. 2025
Later, there is caper-like comedy at a funeral home, which then sobers in a poignant tete-a-tete between Yun-ji and Min-yeong, astute revelations of the broken homes that shaped our young heroines, a climactic riot of slapstick destruction at an emergency school meeting and more.
—Dennis Harvey, Variety, 22 Sep. 2025
Another video captured Xi, Modi and Putin engaging in a lighthearted tete-a-tete on the Summit’s sidelines.
—Kate Nishimura, Sourcing Journal, 2 Sep. 2025
Aside from that tete-a-tete, there was some superb quality on show.
—Beren Cross, New York Times, 28 July 2025
Noun
The tete-a-tete offers a window into the idiosyncratic relationship between Newsom and Trump.
—Bloomberg, Mercury News, 30 Jan. 2026
Told mostly through dialogue, Konfidenz is an intensely psychological tete-a-tete about a woman who receives a phone call from a stranger claiming to be her friend, but soon is revealed to have intimate and dangerous knowledge about her life.
—Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 6 Jan. 2026
Social outings, sports events and fun activities with kids plus romantic tete-a-tetes are tops on your menu.
—Georgia Nicols, Denver Post, 5 Jan. 2026
Texas' initial redistricting saga launched a national tete-a-tete, inspiring other states to redraw their own maps.
—Brittany Shepherd, ABC News, 3 Dec. 2025
Later, there is caper-like comedy at a funeral home, which then sobers in a poignant tete-a-tete between Yun-ji and Min-yeong, astute revelations of the broken homes that shaped our young heroines, a climactic riot of slapstick destruction at an emergency school meeting and more.
—Dennis Harvey, Variety, 22 Sep. 2025
Another video captured Xi, Modi and Putin engaging in a lighthearted tete-a-tete on the Summit’s sidelines.
—Kate Nishimura, Sourcing Journal, 2 Sep. 2025
Aside from that tete-a-tete, there was some superb quality on show.
—Beren Cross, New York Times, 28 July 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for tête-à-tête
Adverb
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Similarly, instead of sounding the alarms in front of the cameras amidst nationwide ICE blowback, Lamont pressed the president directly and personally behind closed doors, securing a commitment that agents wouldn’t be sent where they weren’t requested.—
Jeffrey Sonnenfeld,
Hartford Courant,
29 Mar. 2026
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The plea agreement also states Kimball personally used a small amount of the money for herself, mainly toward mortgage payments or gifts to family members.—
Logan Smith,
CBS News,
29 Mar. 2026
Noun
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Sign up here to receive an email right as the chat is about to start.—
Carolyn Hax,
Washington Post,
27 Mar. 2026
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The video blew up on Chinese social media, becoming a top trending topic and reaching more than 90 million views on Douyin and Weibo, two major platforms – with the video quickly spawning countless memes and group-chat discussions.—
Jessie Yeung,
CNN Money,
26 Mar. 2026
Noun
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But the proposal was full of cartoonishly goofy faux spy talk.—
David D. Kirkpatrick,
New Yorker,
30 Mar. 2026
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Pakistan said Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Egypt will send top diplomats to Islamabad for talks aimed at ending the war, arriving Sunday for a two-day visit.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
29 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Tête-à-tête.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/t%C3%AAte-%C3%A0-t%C3%AAte. Accessed 31 Mar. 2026.
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