Intimacy

Part of speech: noun

Pronunciation: /ˈɪn.tɪ.mə.si/

Definitions

1. A close emotional or physical connection between people characterized by mutual trust, affection, and vulnerability
2. Deep familiarity and closeness between people involving shared vulnerability, trust, and often physical or emotional connection
3. A state of profound personal closeness marked by openness, affection, and the mutual sharing of one's inner self

Etymology: "Intimacy" is built from "intimate" plus the suffix "-acy," which is the same ending found in words like "accuracy," "privacy," and "democracy." The base "intimate" comes from Latin "intimus," meaning "innermost" or "most inward," the superlative of "intus" ("within"). The root sense is spatial: something intimate was once what lay deepest inside a thing, before it came to describe the deepest closeness between people. The "-acy" ending, borrowed through French from Latin "-atia" and "-acia," turns an adjective into a noun for a quality or condition, so "intimacy" names the state of being intimate. Its earliest senses in English were less emotional than today's, with the word often referring to familiarity or a close acquaintance rather than the sharing of one's inner self.

Synonyms: closeness, familiarity, affection, rapport, friendship

Antonyms: distance, alienation, estrangement, indifference, hostility