private life

plural private lives

1. The aspects of one's life that are personal, such as family, friends and other personal relationships, as opposed to the elements that make up one's public or professional life.

   Holonyms: life; daily life, real life

   4 more examples

   Meronyms: dream life, nightlife, love life, sex life

   The Russians have at least three faces: one for the political regime, one for business dealings with anybody, and the real face, which is for one's private life and family reserved. Put another way, how to seem something different to different kinds of people in the public life.

   2017, Jennifer S. Holland, For These Monkeys, It’s a Fight for Survival., National Geographic (March 2017)http://www.nationalgeographic.com/magazine/2017/03/macaques-monkeys-indonesia-endangered-pet-trade/ The researchers are teasing out fine details of the yaki’s private life.

   As a political system democracy seems to me extraordinarily foolish,[…]. My servant is, so far as I am concerned, welcome to as many votes as he can get.[…]I do not suppose that it matters much in reality whether laws are made by dukes or cornerboys, but I like, as far as possible, to associate with gentlemen in private life.

   1915, G[eorge] A. Birmingham [pseudonym; James Owen Hannay], chapter I, in Gossamer, New York, N.Y.: George H. Doran Company, →OCLC

   Synonyms: personal life · Antonyms: public life, work life