privée

Privée is the feminine singular form of the French adjective privé, meaning private, personal, or not publicly accessible. It is used to describe feminine nouns, for example: une vie privée (private life), une propriété privée (private property), une conversation privée (private conversation). The masculine form is privé, and the corresponding plurals are privés (masculine) and privées (feminine).

Etymology and forms: privé derives from Latin privatus, meaning set apart or belonging to an individual, and French grammatical gender agreement yields the feminine forme privée with a grave accent on the first e (privée). In compound terms, the adjective agrees in gender and number with the noun it modifies, as in espace privé or clauses privées.

Usage notes: privé is commonly contrasted with public (publique, publics) to distinguish non-public or personal contexts from official or open ones. Phrases such as à titre privé (in a private capacity) and en privé (in private) are frequent. The term is also used in legal, architectural, and social contexts to denote non-public or personally owned and controlled domains, spaces, or information.

Noun usage: In modern French, privé is primarily an adjective. The feminine form privée may appear in certain noun-like expressions or literary contexts, but it is far less common as a standalone noun than as an adjective.

See also: vie privée, propriété privée, espace privé, public, confidentialité.