释义 |
con·fi·den·tial \|känfə|denchəl\ adjective Etymology: from confidence, after such pairs as English penitence: penitential 1. : communicated, conveyed, acted on, or practiced in confidence : known only to a limited few : not publicly disseminated : private, secret < chary of committing anything of a confidential nature to any more concrete medium than speech — William Faulkner > < confidential remarks > 2. a. : showing confidence in another : disposed to relate or confide private or secret matters < growing still more confidential … said that I would soon be a most important personage among them — W.H.Hudson > b. : marked by or indicative of confiding or confidence : indicative of intimacy, mutual trust, or willingness to confide < he slipped his arm through his father's with a confidential pressure — Edith Wharton > c. : receiving confidences : treated with confidence : adjudged trustworthy < he had been his confidential servant and was intimate with all his habits — Anthony Trollope > 3. a. : secret, hidden, esoteric b. : characterized by or relating to information unauthorized disclosure of which could be prejudicial to a country's interests — compare classified 2 Synonyms: see familiar |