confidentialcon‧fi‧den‧tial /ˌkɒnfɪˈdenʃəl◂ $ ˌkɑːn-/ ●●○ adjective 
a confidential government report Doctors are required to keep patients’ records completely confidential. The information will be regarded as strictly confidential (=completely confidential).► see thesaurus at secret2a confidential way of speaking or behaving shows that you do not want other people to know what you are saying: His voice sank into a confidential whisper.—confidentially adverb
EXAMPLES FROM OTHER DICTIONARIES
- Always protect confidential files by locking them with a password.
- An employee secretly gave confidential memos to the press.
- During the ride back home, Mom started to talk about her problems in a confidential way.
- In 1965, a confidential report to President Johnson was leaked to the press.
- The information we received is of a highly confidential nature and relates to national security.
- We hold confidential records on each employee.
- Ads on the subways asked us to call a confidential hotline if we knew what crimes our local school board was committing.
- All the information will be confidential.
- For example, online techniques are being increasingly used for the rapid transmission of confidential non-publicly available information.
- He declined to give details, citing agreements with courts to keep this information confidential for the time being.
- Jeffrey has said the remark was supposed to remain confidential and was intended to be sarcastic.
- She was not one for planning or manoeuvring but confidential reports are kept on Salvation Army officers throughout their careers.
- We will, of course, treat all information we receive as confidential.
- Young people will have the right to confidential medical advice and treatment.
THESAURUS
known about by only a few people, who have agreed not to tell anyone else: · a secret meeting place· The details of the proposal must remain secret.
used about information, especially in business or government, that is secret and not intended to be shown or told to other people: · a highly confidential report· Employees’ personal details are treated as strictly confidential.
used about information that the government has ordered to be kept secret from most people: · He was accused of passing on classified information to the Russians in the 1950s.
used about information that is kept secret because there would be problems if the wrong people knew it: · A teenager managed to hack into sensitive US Air Force files.
[only before noun] used about things that are done secretly, especially by a government or official organization: · a CIA covert operation
[usually before noun] used about things that are done secretly by the police in order to catch criminals or find out information: · Detectives arrested the suspect after a five-day undercover operation.
an underground organization or newspaper is one that operates or is produced secretly and opposes the government: · Her father was a member of the underground resistance movement in France during World War II.
secret and often illegal or immoral: · clandestine meetings· his involvement in a clandestine operation to sell arms to Iran· a clandestine love affair
informal used about information or activities that are kept officially secret: · He was put in charge of some hush-hush military project.· I’ve no idea what he does – it’s all very hush-hush.
Longman Language Activatorsecret information/plans/places/activities if something is secret , not many people know about it, and they agree not to tell anyone else about it: · The letter was written in a secret code.· Secret documents containing details of Britain's defence plans have been stolen.· The president's schedule is secret, but there is speculation that he will visit UN troops in the area.remain/stay secret: · I hope you see how vital it is that our conversation remains secret.top secret (=when an official document, piece of information etc is very secret): · The experiments were top secret.secret ballot (=a secret vote): · The Leader of the House will be selected by secret ballot.
confidential information is known only by a few official people, and must not be told to anyone else, for example because it contains military secrets or private details about people: · We hold confidential records on each employee.· Always protect confidential files by locking them with a password.· An employee secretly gave confidential memos to the press.highly confidential (=very confidential): · The information we received is of a highly confidential nature and relates to national security.
classified information or documents are ones that the government has ordered to be kept secret: · There is evidence that Huang had access to classified information.· Only licensed companies are eligible to receive, store, or send classified material.
information or documents that are sensitive are likely to cause problems or embarrassment if they are made public and therefore they are kept secret: · A teenager used his personal computer to break into sensitive US Air Force files. · Your competitors may have access to the company intranet, so never discuss commercially sensitive issues on-line.highly sensitive: · The minister admitted that highly sensitive documents had been leaked to the press.
done secretly, especially by a government or official organization, often involving breaking the law: · The chief investigator resigned, amid allegations of covert and probably illegal operations.· The abuse of residents in the home was confirmed by covert video surveillance.
working secretly - use this about the activities of the police, the army etc: · Six members of a drug-smuggling gang were arrested after an 18-month undercover police operation.· The unit is equipped to deal with a variety of situations, including undercover surveillance.
if something is veiled , cloaked , or shrouded in secrecy , very little is known about it and it seems very mysterious: · In Japan, the private lives of the Emperor and his family were once veiled in secrecy.· The President's exact itinerary was cloaked in secrecy for security reasons.· This ground-breaking work is shrouded in secrecy on the instruction of the company's lawyers.
informal kept officially secret: · His death was really hush-hush. It was so covered up that you wondered if it wasn't a suicide.· 'The Manhattan Project' was the insiders' name for the hush-hush project.
use this about methods and activities that involve a lot of secrecy, especially when this seems unnecessary: · He was arrested after a cloak-and-dagger operation involving the CIA and MI6.
COLLOCATIONS FROM THE ENTRY Doctors are required to keep patients’ records completely confidential. The information will be regarded as strictly confidential (=completely confidential).COLLOCATIONS FROM OTHER ENTRIES
Doctors are required to keep patients’ records completely confidential. The information will be regarded as strictly confidential (=completely confidential).· Have a confidential chat with the school nurse.
· That information was confidential and should not have been passed on.
· They were transferring confidential student records onto computer.
(=one that only a few people see)· He made a confidential report to UN headquarters in New York.
COLLOCATIONS FROM THE CORPUSADVERB· Much Government information continues to be filed inaccessibly away at central and local level, often classified as commercially confidential.
· In many cases, information stored in computer systems is highly confidential.· These forms are highly confidential between the Doctor and the Chief Medical Officer.· Similarly, it may be warranted in situations where highly confidential and sensitive material is to be handled by the job holder.
· The findings are strictly confidential and we do not know if these athletes were allowed to compete.· The questionnaire itself is strictly confidential.· All personal details are treated as strictly confidential and remain on computer file.· The information will be regarded as strictly confidential.
NOUN· This post demands a high level of commitment in dealing with individual companies seeking sites and premises on a confidential basis.
· There were extremely important secret and confidential documents to be drawn up.· Then he admits the company has filed confidential documents with the Arizona Corporation Commission detailing its stranded costs.· But government departments do not like premature appearances of confidential documents addressed to them.· He says that it is a confidential document.
· Paul received information from other hackers which he used to invade the confidential files of international institutions.
· The first concerns the definition of confidential information.· He added that the penalties against leaking confidential information were severe.· A separate venue must be available, however, if confidential information is to be considered in relation to nursing care.· Of course for the obligation of confidence to lapse the information published must be the same as the confidential information.· If they discovered evidence of share dealing ahead of the takeover by individuals using confidential information they would institute more formal inquiries.· All one may own are such rights as the law confers upon some one who holds confidential information.· It is essential that there is an unauthorised use of the confidential information.· The adjudicating committee can also override this right where confidential information is involved.
· Alongside it were hundreds of patients' confidential medical notes, dozens of confidential letters to senior hospital staff and post-mortem reports.
· In other cases an innocent recipient may be protected at least until he becomes aware of the confidential nature of the information.· He reminds them of the confidential nature of the case: nobody is to discuss it outside the room.· The difficulties in the process are compounded by the confidential nature of the process.
· She was not one for planning or manoeuvring but confidential reports are kept on Salvation Army officers throughout their careers.· A confidential report has revealed the woman was prepared three times for an operation she didn't need.· The Northern has obtained a confidential report written by the authority's director of estates Graham Oak.
· The hearing was to determine if the reporter, Jennifer Lenhart, should be forced to reveal her confidential sources.· The Chronicle argues that reporters have a limited constitutional right not to disclose confidential sources.· Journalists frequently protect the identity of confidential sources from police, courts or government officials.· He has his confidential sources of information.· The Examiner obtained the memo Monday from a confidential source.
WORD FAMILYnounconfidenceconfidantconfidentialityadjectiveconfidentconfidentialadverbconfidentlyconfidentiallyverbconfide
1spoken or written in secret and intended to be kept secret: a confidential government report Doctors are required to keep patients’ records completely confidential. The information will be regarded as strictly confidential (=completely confidential).► see thesaurus at secret2a confidential way of speaking or behaving shows that you do not want other people to know what you are saying: His voice sank into a confidential whisper.—confidentially adverb- Conrail
- Conran, Sir Terence
- consanguinity
- conscience
- conscience-stricken
- conscientious
- conscientiously
- conscientiousness
- conscientious objector
- conscious
- consciously
- consciousness
- consciousness raising
- conscript
- conscription
- consecrate
- consecration
- consecutive
- consecutively
- consensual
- consensus
- consent
- consenting adult
- consequence
- Consequences