A partaker; a person having an interest in any action or thing; one who has an interest in an estate created by another; a person having an interest derived from a contract or conveyance to which he is not himself a party
hidden from general view or use; "a privy place to rest and think"; "a secluded romantic spot"; "a secret garden"
Admitted to knowledge of a secret transaction; secretly cognizant; privately knowing
Of or pertaining to some person exclusively; assigned to private uses; not public; private; as, the privy purse
If you are privy to something secret, you have been allowed to know about it. Only three people, including a policeman, will be privy to the facts. privies a toilet, especially one outside a house in a small separate building
{s} confidential, secret; clandestine, covert; sharing a secret; private, intended only for a particular individual
In Britain, the Privy Council is a group of people who are appointed to advise the king or queen on political affairs. a group of important people in Britain who advise the king or queen on political affairs Councillor. Historically, the British sovereign's private council. Once powerful, the Privy Council has long ceased to be an active body, having lost most of its judicial and political functions since the middle of the 17th century. It grew out of the medieval curia (curia regis), which comprised the king's tenants in chief, household officials, and other advisers. The curia performed all the functions of government in either small groups, which became the king's council, or large groups, which grew into the great council and Parliament. It now is chiefly concerned with issuing royal charters, conducting government research, and serving as an appeals body for ecclesiastical and other lesser courts. See also prerogative court