privy council
a board or select body of personal advisers, as of a sovereign.
(initial capital letters) (in Great Britain) a body of persons who advise the sovereign in matters of state, the majority of members being selected by the prime minister.
(sometimes initial capital letters) any similar body, as one appointed to assist the governor of a British dominion.
Origin of privy council
1Other words from privy council
- privy councilor, noun
Words Nearby privy council
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use privy council in a sentence
The books of the Treasury and of the privy council were rescued, and are still preserved.
The History of England from the Accession of James II. | Thomas Babington MacaulayHis continued efforts to suppress the drama finally led the troupes to appeal for re22lief to the privy council.
Shakespearean Playhouses | Joseph Quincy AdamsThe privy council itself, no doubt, had issued such a general license when the company was organized under royal patronage.
Shakespearean Playhouses | Joseph Quincy AdamsThe manner in which this step was followed up by the government subsequently was unfolded in a minute of the privy-council.
The History of England in Three Volumes, Vol.III. | E. Farr and E. H. NolanIn 1760 the cabinet, an informal committee of the privy council, was an institution of a different character from that of to-day.
The Political History of England - Vol. X. | William Hunt
British Dictionary definitions for privy council (1 of 2)
the council of state of a monarch or noble, esp formerly
(in Canada) a ceremonial body of advisers of the governor general, the chief of them being the Federal cabinet ministers
archaic a private or secret council
British Dictionary definitions for Privy Council (2 of 2)
the private council of the British sovereign, consisting of all current and former ministers of the Crown and other distinguished subjects, all of whom are appointed for life: See also Judicial Committee of the Privy Council
Derived forms of Privy Council
- Privy Counsellor, noun
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
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