| private debt |
within a country or locality, the total amount of money owed to creditors by individuals, businesses, and nongovernmental organizations. |
| private detective |
a person whose job is to investigate criminal or secret activity at the request of paying clients. |
| private enterprise |
an economic system subject to limited government regulation in which the means of production are privately owned; free enterprise. |
| privateer |
a privately owned, armed ship commissioned by the state to attack or capture enemy ships in wartime. [3 definitions] |
| private eye |
(informal) a private detective. |
| private first class |
a soldier in the U.S. Army or Marine Corps ranking below a corporal and above a private. |
| private investigator |
a person whose job is to investigate criminal or secret activity at the request of paying clients; private detective. |
| privately |
without the knowledge of others. |
| privation |
lack of necessities or common comforts of life. [2 definitions] |
| privative |
acting to deprive. [4 definitions] |
| privatization |
the conversion of an industry, business, or the like from government ownership or control to ownership or control by the private sector. |
| privatize |
to change from governmental control or ownership to private. [2 definitions] |
| privet |
a shrub of European origin having evergreen leaves and bearing small white flowers, often cultivated as hedge. |
| privilege |
a right, immunity, benefit, or advantage belonging or granted exclusively to a person, group, social class, rank, or the like. [3 definitions] |
| privileged |
having advantages over others, especially due to wealth and family background; having privileges. [4 definitions] |
| privileged communication |
a communication that one cannot be forced to divulge, such as that between a doctor and a patient. [2 definitions] |
| privy |
sharing the knowledge of something secret or private (usu. fol. by "to"). [2 definitions] |
| privy council |
a body of counselors or advisers that serves and is usu. appointed by a monarch. |
| privy seal |
in Great Britain, an official seal placed on government documents. |
| prix fixe |
a fixed price charged for a complete meal. (Cf. à la carte.) [2 definitions] |
| prize |
a reward offered or won in a contest, competition, game of chance, or the like. [8 definitions] |