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confidentiality

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Etymology and origin of the English word confidentiality

Confidence
Established
Formation
Derivation
First attested
1830
Ultimate origin
Latin confīdō
Etymology tree
inherited borrowed derived
English confidential
English confidentiality

Pronunciation

  • UK: /ˌkɒnfɪdentʃiˈæləti/, /ˌkɒnfɪdenʃiˈæləti/[1]
  • US: /ˌkɑːnfədentʃiˈælət̬i/, /ˌkɑːnfədenʃiˈælət̬i/[1]

Etymology

It is formed from English confidential + -ity.[2][3] confidential is from Latin confīdentia (“confidence”) with the suffix -al;[2][3] the OED compares French confidentiel.[2] The Latin noun comes from confīdēns (“firmly trusting, bold”), the present participle of confīdō (“to have full trust or reliance”).[3]

Earliest recorded meaning

The quality or state of being confidential: Etymonline dates the word to 1830,[3] and the OED's first quotation is from 1834, in the writings of W. Taylor.[2][4]

Semantic evolution

The word followed the senses of confidential, which meant "spoken or written in confidence" from 1773 and "entrusted with secrets" from 1805.[2][3] The OED also records it for a confidential relation, a relationship of trust between two people.[2][4] In law it is used both for the restriction of who may learn certain information and for the relation of trust between lawyer and client, guardian and ward, or husband and wife.[5] Merriam-Webster's quotation shows it applied to the privacy of clinical records.[6]

Timeline

  • 1830 – first date given by Etymonline.[3]
  • 1834 – first quotation in the OED, confidential quality.[2][4]

Meanings

Noun

  1. The quality or state of being kept private or secret: The clinic promised complete confidentiality to everyone who called.[6][2][5]
  2. In law, the relation of trust between people such as a lawyer and a client or a guardian and a ward, with regard to what one tells the other.[5][2]

References

  1. ^ a b Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i Oxford English Dictionary Online (accessed March 2026), Oxford: Oxford University Press
  3. ^ a b c d e f Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  4. ^ a b c Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
  5. ^ a b c Garner, Bryan A., ed. (2004), Black's Law Dictionary, 8th ed., St. Paul, Minn.: Thomson West
  6. ^ a b Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster

Related etymologies

Cite this entry

“Confidentiality.” Etymologically, 31 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/en/confidentiality. Accessed 31 Oct. 2026.

Last edited on . ·