intimate
1 Americanadjective
-
associated in close personal relations.
an intimate friend.
- Synonyms:
- dear
-
characterized by or involving warm friendship or a personally close or familiar association or feeling.
an intimate greeting.
-
very private; closely personal.
one's intimate affairs.
- Synonyms:
- secret, confidential
-
characterized by or suggesting an atmosphere conducive to privacy or intimacy; warmly cozy.
an intimate little café where we can relax and talk.
-
(of an association, knowledge, understanding, etc.) arising from close personal connection or familiar experience.
-
engaged in or characterized by sexual relations.
too young to handle an intimate relationship.
-
(of women's clothing) worn next to the skin, under street or outer garments.
a store that sells intimate apparel.
-
a more intimate analysis.
- Synonyms:
- profound, thorough, in-depth, exhaustive
-
showing a close union or combination of particles or elements.
an intimate mixture.
-
inmost; deep within.
-
of, relating to, or characteristic of the inmost or essential nature; intrinsic.
the intimate structure of an organism.
-
of, relating to, or existing in the inmost depths of the mind.
intimate beliefs.
noun
-
intimates
plural
adjective
-
characterized by a close or warm personal relationship
an intimate friend
-
deeply personal, private, or secret
-
euphemistic having sexual relations (with)
-
-
having a deep or unusual knowledge (of)
-
(of knowledge) deep; extensive
-
-
having a friendly, warm, or informal atmosphere
an intimate nightclub
-
of or relating to the essential part or nature of something; intrinsic
-
denoting the informal second person of verbs and pronouns in French and other languages
noun
verb
-
to hint; suggest
-
to proclaim; make known
Synonym Usage
See familiar.
See hint.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
intimatesimple
-
intimatessimple
-
have intimatedperfect
-
has intimatedperfect
-
am intimatingprogressive
-
are intimatingprogressive
-
is intimatingprogressive
-
have been intimatingperfect progressive
-
has been intimatingperfect progressive
Past
-
intimatedsimple
-
had intimatedperfect
-
was intimatingprogressive
-
were intimatingprogressive
-
had been intimatingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of intimate1
First recorded in 1600–10; from Latin intimātus, past participle of intimāre “to announce, make known,” derivative of intimus “inmost, most intimate”; see intima
Origin of intimate2
First recorded in 1530–40; from Late Latin intimātus, past participle of intimāre “to impress (upon), make known,” equivalent to intim(us) “inmost” ( see intima) + -ātus -ate 1
Explanation
Intimate means being close. A small restaurant is called intimate because you're sitting close to the other people, and your best friends are considered your intimate friends. This adjective can mean very friendly, or very personal or private. The original spelling was intime, from French, from Latin intimus "innermost," from intus "within." The related verb intimate means to hint or suggest. Intimate is also a noun meaning a close friend or associate. You might intimate to your intimates that you want to leave a boring party.
Vocabulary lists containing intimate
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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.
See Examples For:
Throughout his recollections, he renders chemistry in physical and intimate terms.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 24, 2026
Having a bird swoop down to snatch food from your hand is one of the most intimate interactions we can have with wildlife.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 24, 2026
“The laugh is a vehicle through which we’re doing this. The intimate connection of people revealing something vulnerable from their heart, that creates a connection that is healthy and thoughtful versus just getting laughs.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 18, 2026
It's delicate and gorgeous and strangely intimate in a room of 20,000 people.
From BBC ● Aug. 16, 2026
It was mythic and romantic, being an intimate witness to this turn in life’s cycle, but Mother had been right, I didn’t like it.
From "Educated" by Tara Westover
Skillfully collating the accounts of Auden’s intimates, he offers details about the poet’s sexuality, psyche, cratering appearance and deteriorating habits that are painful to contemplate.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 31, 2026
They were intimates in childhood and the present, but “those were only two forgivable Birdies,” she writes.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 26, 2026
These are intentionally not the Kennedy family’s stories or takes from their intimates, but the people who had enough of a professional closeness to be at hand when the assassination happened.
From Salon ● Nov. 5, 2023
“There is something in a landscape like that which humbles you and intimates to you that there’s something very big out there, and this thing has an awful lot of power,” says Lindahl.
From National Geographic ● Oct. 13, 2023
Having failed to revive the great collaboration of the revolutionary era, Adams and Jefferson went their separate ways with different intimates.
From "Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation" by Joseph J. Ellis
It is easy to see why Newcastle do not want to lose their talisman after he intimated he wished to join Arsenal.
From BBC ● Jul. 19, 2026
During discussions aimed at checking the financial conditions of a deal for Guimaraes, it is understood a fee of around £60m was initially intimated with the 28-year-old's representatives.
From BBC ● Jul. 8, 2026
No matter what was intimated in back-channel talks, the unwillingness of Iran’s regime to put substantive nuclear commitments in the memorandum of understanding is a warning.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 17, 2026
“He actually intimated that he might not be able to do it this year,” Winston says of the comedian and former “Daily Show” host.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 28, 2026
I have already intimated that my condition was much worse, during the first six months of my stay at Mr. Covey’s, than in the last six.
From "Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass" by Frederick Douglass
Cronin said he anticipated using multiple starting lineups , intimating that they would be based on matchups.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 31, 2024
The first paragraph argues that there is no “clause intimating it to be a compact.”
From Salon ● Dec. 16, 2023
"It's right that we take our time to wait for the report," she said, intimating that she would not be voting for the amendment.
From BBC ● Dec. 3, 2023
Asked by other players what she was doing, she shouted, “Look at me, look at me,” intimating she couldn’t do much about it.
From Washington Times ● Aug. 21, 2023
He was intimating that physics at Berkeley might have to continue without Robert Oppenheimer.
From "Big Science" by Michael Hiltzik
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.
