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Synonyms

tête-à-tête

American  
[teyt-uh-teyt, tet-uh-tet, te-ta-tet] / ˈteɪt əˈteɪt, ˈtɛt əˈtɛt, tɛ taˈtɛt /

noun

plural

tête-à-têtes,

plural

tête-à-tête

  1. a private conversation or interview, usually between two people.

  2. Also called vis-à-vis.  a sofa shaped like an S so two people are able to converse face to face.

adjective

  1. of, between, or for two persons together without others.

adverb

  1. (of two persons) together in private.

    to sit tête-à-tête.
tête-à-tête British  
/ ˌteɪtəˈteɪt /

noun

    1. a private conversation between two people

    2. ( as modifier )

      a tête-à-tête conversation

  2. a small sofa for two people, esp one that is S-shaped in plan so that the sitters are almost face to face

"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

adverb

  1. intimately; in private

"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
tête-à-tête Cultural  

  1. An intimate meeting or conversation between two individuals. From French, meaning “head to head.”

Etymology

Origin of tête-à-tête

First recorded in 1690–1700; from French: literally, “head to head”

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.

When she revisited that high-octane scene on set with a more willing scene partner in Pelphrey, Jones said going tête-à-tête with him was a riveting experience: “I forgot that there were cameras rolling.”

From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 5, 2025

The "Call Her Daddy" conversation was not the contentious tête-à-tête the chattering class has come to expect after decades of cable news bloviating somehow came to represent meaningful political coverage.

From Salon • Oct. 8, 2024

“Freud’s Last Session” comes from the stage and, like “The Two Popes,” centers on the tête-à-tête of intellectual opposites.

From Seattle Times • Jan. 17, 2024

So few of the specifics of their tête-à-tête with Altman have become public that it’s hard to assess who’s right.

From Slate • Nov. 27, 2023

It reminded her of their first forlorn tête-à-tête, on the evening of Mrs. Weston’s wedding-day; but Mr. Knightley had walked in then, soon after tea, and dissipated every melancholy fancy.

From "Emma" by Jane Austen

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.