tête-à-tête

American  

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

noun

tête-à-têtes, plural tête-à-tête plural

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.

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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. 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

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adverb

1. intimately; in private

tête-à-tête Cultural  

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

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• tête-à-tête
  plural
• tête-à-têtes
  plural

Etymology

Origin of tête-à-tête

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

Explanation

A tete-a-tete might be a casual chat, but it's more likely to be a formal conversation or meeting between only two people. If your boss requests a tete-a-tete with you, she means that she wants to have a meeting, just the two of you. Maybe you'll get a raise at the tete-a-tete — or maybe you're in trouble. You could schedule a tete-a-tete with your college adviser or plan to sit down with your roommate and have a tete-a-tete about the dirty dishes in the sink. The leaders of warring countries might also try to settle disputes through a tete-a-tete. In French, tête-à-tête literally means "head to head."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

tête-à-tête tête-à-têtes

It is nothing short of a revelation, one in which we are invited to eavesdrop on a decadeslong tête-à-tête between the two masters as they discover, reinvent and refine their forms and materials.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 29, 2026

The film finally transitions from the emotional tête-à-tête to the genre piece that was promised, as Sam and Mary discover they’ve seen the same ghost: a horrifying red spectral vision.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 17, 2026

For a few hours on Sunday, the United States and Colombia engaged in a full-blown economic tête-à-tête.

From Slate ● Jan. 28, 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

I had prepared an occupation for him; for I was determined not to spend the whole time in a tête-à-tête conversation.

From "Jane Eyre" by Charlotte Brontë

In her company, Julian sheds most of his ego, engaging in intellectual tête-à-têtes about his past works and whether a forgery can ever really capture an artist’s intention and energy.

From Salon ● Apr. 17, 2026

It is as funny as it is surreal, but it isn’t a flight of comic fancy on the screenwriters’ part: Such tête-à-têtes run throughout Lee’s 2004 memoir, “Tommyland.”

From New York Times ● Feb. 2, 2022

Robert often met with the Soviet agent in his office at DOJ; the FBI might have caught whiff of these tête-à-têtes, but the CIA was in the dark.

From Slate ● May 27, 2017

In a second 12-episode season of tense tête-à-têtes, which kicked off Sunday, it appears that the tables have turned.

From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 22, 2017

I hitched myself a little nearer to her and lapsed into the confidential tone she encouraged in our tête-à-têtes.

From When Grandmamma Was New The Story of a Virginia Childhood by Harland, Marion

Related Words

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