inner circle

noun

1. a small, intimate, and often influential group of people.

Word History and Origins

Origin of inner circle¹

First recorded in 1870–75

Example Sentences

Even his inner circle has been intimidated by his strategy of entrusting command of the army to his closest associates and giving Israeli operatives the job of training elite troops and his personal security detail.

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Her loyal inner circle did not leak any information.

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In an eye-opening postmortem of a brutally short presidential campaign, Kamala Harris lays bare her grievances with members of President Biden’s inner circle.

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Again and again, Harris provides examples of being left out of the loop or not robustly supported by his inner circle.

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Emmanuel Macron's immediate recourse has been to entrust a member of his inner circle to pioneer a new approach.

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