intimate

comparative more intimate · superlative most intimate

1. Closely acquainted; familiar.

   an intimate friend

   2 more examples

   He and his sister deeply valued their intimate relationship as they didn't have much else to live for.

   WE are such intimate friends that more than almost anyone else you can appreciate the grief as well as the actual public and private loss that the death of my cousin Lucius is to me.

   1920, Cicero, translated by Evelyn Shirley Shuckburgh, The Letters of Cicero: The Whole Extant Correspondence in Chronological Order, volume 1 (hardcover), London: G. Bell and Sons, Ltd., page 1

   Synonyms: thick

2. Personal; private.

   an intimate setting

3. euphemisticPertaining to sex organs or underwear.

   Intimate apparel departments have separate sections for bras and panties; within those sections, our intimate apparel firm would have its bras displayed separately from its panties.

   2017 [2014], Elizabeth K. Briody, Ken C. Erickson, “Success despite the silos: System-wide innovation and collaboration”, in Maryann McCabe, editor, Collaborative Ethnography in Business Environments, Routledge, page 37

4. euphemisticPertaining to sexual acts or a sexual relationship.

   She enjoyed some intimate time alone with her husband.

   1 more example

   The man, who had been arrested for being intimate with a donkey, admitted the conduct in question but claimed that the donkey had not been a donkey when he met her at a nightclub last Saturday night, but rather a prostitute.

   2011 October 28, Kevin Underhill, “Shape-Shifting Donkey Prostitute Strikes Again”, in Lowering the Bar, archived from the original on 16 Dec 2022

5. Pertaining to details that require great familiarity to know.

   The candidate showed an intimate knowledge of the inner workings of politics.

   2 more examples

   Grélard et al.⁸⁷ determined the intimate structure of pseudoviral particles of hepatitis B subvirus using solid-state NMR, light scattering, and cryo-electron microscopy.

   2015, Slawomir Pikula, Joanna Bandorowicz-Pikula, Patrick Groves, “NMR of lipids”, in Nuclear Magnetic Resonance, volume 44, Cambridge: Royal Society of Chemistry, →ISSN, page 391

   Harry and David spent most of their childhood outside, developing an intimate knowledge of the animals, waterways, and plant life of Mid Wales.

   2026 May 28, Cyrus Dunham, “Nature's Way”, in Architectural Digest, volume 83, number 4, page 106

6. Very finely mixed.

   Black powder consists of an intimate mixture of potassium nitrate, charcoal, and sulfur.

plural intimates

1. A very close friend.

   Only a couple of intimates had ever read his writing.

   Synonyms: bosom buddy, bosom friend, cater-cousin

2. in the plural intimatesWomen's underwear, sleepwear, or lingerie, especially offered for sale in a store.

   You'll find bras and panties in the intimates section upstairs.

   Synonyms: intimate apparel

present singular third person intimates · participle present intimating · participle past intimated · past intimated

1. ambitransitiveTo suggest or disclose (something) discreetly.

   He intimated that we should leave before the argument escalated.

   5 more examples

   And ſince this Family, called Ciu, which now holdeth the Souereigntie, hath reigned, it is called Min [translating 明 (Míng)], which intimateth Splendour, and by vſuall addition of one ſyllable Ta-min [translating 大明 (Dàmíng)], that is, the Kingdome of Great Splendour, Brightneſſe or Glory.

   1625, [Samuel] Purchas, “A Diſcourſe of the Kingdome of China”, in Purchas His Pilgrimes. […], 3rd part, London: […] William Stansby for Henrie Fetherstone, […], →OCLC, 2nd book, § V, page 380

   One of our friends, nevertheless—the younger one—intimated that he felt a disposition to interrupt a few of these soft familiarities; but his companion observed, pertinently enough, that he had better be careful.

   1878, Henry James, An International Episode

   […]Von Bulow saved himself in time—but, canny diplomat that he was, he nevertheless had made one error: he should have begun by talking about his own shortcomings and Wilhelm's superiority—not by intimating that the Kaiser was a half-wit in need of a guardian.

   1936, Dale Carnegie, “Talk about your own mistakes first”, in How to Win Friends and Influence People, page 223

   The thematic point of retaliation, as we have seen, is intimated in the biblical text, but without the suggestion that Judah himself is conscious of the connections.

   1981, Robert Alter, “A Literary Approach to the Bible”, in The Art of Biblical Narrative, page 11

   He feels deeply betrayed by his MAGA supporters who believed him when he intimated during the campaign that something was nefarious about the government’s handling of the [Epstein] case, and who now have a hard time believing him when he says their suspicions are actually bogus.

   2025 August 7, Jonathan Lemire, “Things Aren’t Going Donald Trump’s Way”, in The Atlantic

   Synonyms: hint

2. IndiatransitiveTo notify.

   I will intimate you when the details are available.