intimacy
Americannoun
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intimacies
plural
-
the state of being intimate.
-
a close, familiar, and usually affectionate or loving personal relationship with another person or group.
- Synonyms:
- affection, warmth, familiarity, closeness
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a close association with or detailed knowledge or deep understanding of a place, subject, period of history, etc..
an intimacy with Japan.
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an act or expression serving as a token of familiarity, affection, or the like.
to allow the intimacy of using first names.
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an amorously familiar act; liberty.
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sexual intercourse.
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the quality of being comfortable, warm, or familiar.
the intimacy of the room.
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privacy, especially as suitable to the telling of a secret.
in the intimacy of his studio.
noun
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close or warm friendship or understanding; personal relationship
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euphemistic (often plural) sexual relations
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of intimacy
First recorded in 1635–45; intim(ate) 1 + -acy
Explanation
Intimacy is closeness with another person, like the intimacy that develops between friends as you tell one another your life stories and all your secrets and dreams for the future. The noun intimacy comes from the Latin word intimare, which means “impress,” or “make familiar,” which comes from the Latin intimus, meaning “inmost.” Intimacy is a close, family-like connection. There is another kind of intimacy — physical intimacy, which comes from having a sexual relationship, which, one hopes, fosters the other kind of intimacy as well.
Vocabulary lists containing intimacy
Power Suffix: -acy
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"Mother Tongue" by Amy Tan
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Put simply: It’s more difficult to maintain the true intimacy than it’s ever been.
From Salon ● Aug. 15, 2026
The British former stunt coordinator has been at the forefront of intimacy coordinators becoming an industry norm for more than a decade now.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 12, 2026
Their presence gives “The Terminal Crew of Dudes” an intimacy that feels less like a comedy special and more like friends jamming and trying to make each other laugh.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 10, 2026
A survey of the Young British Artist spotlights the intimacy and boldness that have characterized her vision, as well as the ripening wisdom of her latest work.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 3, 2026
The grammatical mood is imperative, but the rhetorical effect is one of intimacy and humility.
From "Words Like Loaded Pistols" by Sam Leith
His mind slalomed elegantly through the intimacies of his body, his marriages and his neighborhood, but never through ideology.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 10, 2025
The lines that had once been carved in laws and norms are obsolete in the eyes of an algorithm designed to lure you into the performative intimacies of strangers’ lives.
From Slate ● Sep. 10, 2025
What is it like when you travel with someone and you fart in front of them for the first time, or they see you brushing your teeth and all of these intimacies?
From Los Angeles Times ● May 30, 2024
In a mega two-hour, dual album, released in two parts as "The Tortured Poets Department" and "The Anthology," Swift pens 31 different heartbreaks, triumphs and intimacies — tortured poems if you will.
From Salon ● Apr. 19, 2024
They said they loved each other, used “darling” and “dearest,” and knew their future was together, but they held back from wilder intimacies.
From "Atonement" by Ian McEwan
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
