confidentiality
Americannoun
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the quality or fact of being confidential, private, or restricted to certain parties, usually by agreement or formal requirement.
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something confidential or private; confidence.
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a rule or expectation within a particular field of activity that the restriction of private information is to be respected.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Explanation
Confidentiality is what you observe when you keep things secret. If you happen to be a mafia boss with lots of dark secrets, you'll want to be sure you can count on complete confidentiality from your wife and family. Confidentiality is important not just to people involved in illegal activities. You expect your close friends and family to keep your secrets — you count on their confidentiality. Confidentiality might also apply to your job — if your company is working on a new computer game, confidentiality is essential to prevent leaks to your competitors. The word confidentiality includes the Latin root fides, which means "faith," or "trust."
Vocabulary lists containing confidentiality
Journalism
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United States v. Nixon (1974)
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Words with 15 or More Letters, List 3
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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.
“Polymarket prohibits trading based on stolen information, illegal tips, or information obtained in breach of a duty of trust, confidentiality, or other legal obligation,” the Polymarket spokesperson said in a statement.
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 16, 2026
“For domestic violence services as a whole, confidentiality is the pillar that holds us to being able to do what we do,” Nikhita Ved, a director at the National Domestic Violence Hotline, told me.
From Slate • Jun. 15, 2026
Dr David Wrigley, deputy chair of the BMA's GP committee England, said he had "real concerns" about what the plans would mean for confidentiality.
From BBC • Jun. 1, 2026
Klymochko noticed in th e 8-K filing External link by Taylor Morrison on Monday that the two companies signed a confidentiality agreement on May 27.
From Barron's • Jun. 1, 2026
But these debates had all occurred behind closed doors and under the strictest code of confidentiality.
From "Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation" by Joseph J. Ellis
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.
