See Also: tri-personal(dictionary)
personal(dictionary)
PERSONAL(law)
personal ad(dictionary)
personal(dictionary)
Personal use property(finance)
Personal trust(finance)
Personal selling(finance)
Personal property(finance)
PERSONAL ACTIONS(law)

personal (iou)



personal adjective & noun. LME.
[Old French (also personel, mod. personnel) from Latin personalis, from persona: see PERSON noun, -AL1.]
A. adjective.
I.
Of, pertaining to, concerning, or affecting a person as an individual (rather than as a member of a group or of the public, or in a professional capacity etc.); individual; private; one's own. LME.
J. T. Story A doorbell makes every visitor sound the samea knock is very personal. T. Benn Records about individuals relating to their own personal affairs. V. Brome Freud and Jung were..trying to prevent personal differences from interfering with professional relations. D. Lodge He drives to his personal parking space. Voice of the Arab World Arafat's driver and personal bodyguard.
b. Applicable or belonging only to. M18.
Done, made, etc., in person; involving the actual presence or action of the individual. LME.
A. J. Cronin Some..disinclined for the personal encounter even sent their wives. I. Murdoch Rosa decided to open her campaign by a personal visit, rather than by a letter.
b. Present or engaged in person. L16-E17.
Of or pertaining to one's person or body. LME.
Addison A Princess whose Personal Charms..were now become the least part of her Character. D. Attenborough The sloth..pays..little attention to its personal hygiene.
Of, referring or tending to refer to, a person's character, private concerns, etc., esp. in a disparaging or offensive way. E17.
Medical & Physical Journal A dispute which..has degenerated into personal abuse. C. Odets How much, if I'm not getting too personal, did such a violin cost you? Rugby World It was nothing personal against the young man himself.
b. Having oneself as object; directed to oneself. L18.
O. Manning Times being what they were, personal pride was out of place.
c. Directed to or intended for a particular individual. M19.
J. Symons The rectangular package was..marked Personal
II.
Grammar.
a. Designating a verb used in all persons (PERSON noun 7). Opp. impersonal. Now rare. M16.
b. Designating each of the pronouns corresponding to the grammatical persons (e.g. I, you, them). M17.
Christian Theology. = HYPOSTATIC 1. M16-E17.
Philosophy.
a. Of, pertaining to, or characteristic of a self-conscious or rational being. M17.
b. Existing as a person, not a thing or abstraction. M19.
III.
Personable. rare. M17.
Special collocations & phrases: chattels personal: see CHATTEL 2. personal action Law: brought for compensation or damages for loss of a thing from the person responsible, rather than for recovery of the (movable) thing itself. personal bar Law = ESTOPPEL 1. personal column a section of a newspaper devoted to private advertisements or messages. personal computer: designed for use by an individual esp. in an office, business, or home environment. personal diligence Scots Law (now Hist.) the process for enforcing payments, recovering debts, etc., by imprisonment of the debtor. personal effects: see EFFECT noun. personal equation: see EQUATION 4. personal equity plan = PEP s.v. P, P. personal estate = personal property below. personal identification number: see PIN noun2. personal information manager a computer program functioning as an address book, organizer, diary, etc. personal injury Law: to a person's body rather than his or her property or reputation. personal law: applicable to a person or class of people (e.g. one distinguished by religion) irrespective of where situated. personal organizer (a) a loose-leaf notebook with sections for various kinds of information, including a diary; (b) a hand-held microcomputer serving the same purpose. personal pension a pension scheme that is independent of the contributor's employer. personal property Law all property (including debts etc.) except land and those interests in land passing to the heir on the owner's death. personal representative Law an executor or administrator of the estate of a deceased person. personal servitude: see SERVITUDE 3. personal shopper an individual who is paid to assist another to purchase goods, either by accompanying them while shopping or by shopping on their behalf. personal space Sociology the area around an individual where encroachment by others causes anxiety or uneasiness. personal stereo a small portable cassette player and/or radio used with lightweight headphones. personal touch a personal element added to something otherwise impersonal. personal watercraft: see watercraft s.v. WATER noun.
b. noun.
In pl. Personal belongings; personal matters. Formerly also spec., personal property. Now rare. E18.
b. In pl. Personal remarks. M18.
c. An advertisement or notice in the personal column of a newspaper. Chiefly N. Amer. M19.
Basketball. A foul involving bodily contact with an opponent. M20.