PERSONAL


Meaning of PERSONAL in English

I. ˈpərs( ə )nəl, ˈpə̄s-, ˈpəis- adjective

Etymology: Middle English, from Middle French personnel, personel, personal, from Late Latin personalis, from Latin persona person + -alis -al — more at person

1. : of or relating to a particular person : affecting one individual or each of many individuals : peculiar or proper to private concerns : not public or general

personal allegiance

personal baggage

personal correspondence

2.

a. : done in person without the intervention of another : direct from one person to another

a personal inquiry

also : originating in or proceeding from a single person

a personal ultimatum

personal government

b. obsolete : engaged or present in person

c. : carried on between individuals directly

a personal interview

3. : relating to the person or body : bodily

personal appearance

personal liberty

4.

a. : relating to an individual, his character, conduct, motives, or private affairs especially in an invidious and offensive manner

personal reflections

also : relating to oneself

personal vanity

b. : making or given to making personal reflection

very personal in his comments

5.

a. : relating to or characteristic of human beings as distinct from things

b. : rational and self-conscious

a personal God

6. : exclusively for a given individual

a personal letter

7. substandard : personable 1

8. : of, relating to, or constituting personal property

a personal estate

personal interests

— compare real 1a

9.

a. : denoting grammatical person

a personal suffix

b. of a verb : inflected for all three persons — compare impersonal

II. noun

( -s )

: something of which the relation to a human individual is a basic attribute: as

a. personals plural , archaic : personal property : chattels

b.

(1) : a personal remark

(2) : a short newspaper item giving information about the social or other activities of a local person, family, or group

(3) : a short personal or private communication printed in a special column of the classified ads section of a newspaper or periodical — compare agony column

c. archaic : personnel

d. : personal pronoun

e. : a personal foul in a sports contest

III. adverb

substandard : personally

Webster's New International English Dictionary.      Новый международный словарь английского языка Webster.