Dictionary.com
definitions

private company

noun British.
  1. a company whose shareholders may not exceed 50 in number and whose shares may not be offered for public subscription.
Compare public company.

Origin of private company

First recorded in 1905–10
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
British Dictionary definitions for private company

private company

noun
  1. a limited company that does not issue shares for public subscription and whose owners do not enjoy an unrestricted right to transfer their shareholdingsCompare public company
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012