private equity

noun

plural private equities
1
: investment in a company that does not trade on a public stock exchange : interest in a private company
… the proportion of the pension fund parked in private equity grew from nearly 21% of the portfolio in 2014 to about 28% earlier this year.Alex Baumhardt
often used before a noun
private equity investments
2
: investment groups that pool the money of investors in order to acquire ownership shares in private companies
Private equity likes to acquire firms with debt, merge some of them together, find efficiencies, expand and then sell the company or go public on the stock market—in hopes of making a profit for investors.Kelly Yamanouchi

Examples of private equity in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
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Francois Candelon is a partner at private equity firm Seven2 and executive fellow at the HBS AI Institute (formerly known as the D^3 Institute). François Candelon, Fortune, 12 June 2026 The idea is to ditch the rigid allocations to stocks, bonds, private equity and real estate around which many institutional investors organize their money managers’ work. Bloomberg, Mercury News, 11 June 2026 Independent wealth firms today are increasingly expected to provide access to institutional-quality opportunities across private equity, private credit, infrastructure and alternative investments. Elie Nour, Forbes.com, 11 June 2026 At the same time, private capital from venture capital and private equity firms has expanded. Brad Badertscher, The Conversation, 11 June 2026 Terrible’s takes over for Affinity Gaming, owned by private equity company Z Capital Partners, in the full-circle world of southern Nevada gaming. Andrew J. Campa, Los Angeles Times, 10 June 2026 The idea is to ditch the rigid allocations to stocks, bonds, private equity and real estate around which many institutional investors organize their money managers’ work. Bloomberg, Oc Register, 10 June 2026 In 2022, Real Madrid made private equity giant Sixth Street a partner in the Bernabéu project, trading a share of stadium revenue over 20 years for €360 million ($425 million) to put toward construction. Kurt Badenhausen, Sportico.com, 10 June 2026 This one was brought to you by Thoma Bravo, the private equity software company specialist. Jim Cramer, Contributor, CNBC, 10 June 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1959, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of private equity was in 1959

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Cite this Entry

“Private equity.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/private%20equity. Accessed 17 Jun. 2026.

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