privy
An outdoor toilet; the outhouse out back.
Also called outhouse, privy house, backhouse.
Updated September 24, 2026
privy pronunciation
/PRIV-ee/
Meaning
The little building behind the house before indoor plumbing showed up. Rural Southern and Appalachian folks still say privy when telling stories about cold nights, lantern walks, and a crescent cut in the door. It is the polite old word for what city talk calls an outhouse.
How folks use it
- “Path to the privy gets slick after a hard rain.”
- “Granddaddy still calls that shed the privy even though nobody uses it.”
Origin and etymology
From Middle English and Old French for a private place. English speakers used it for a toilet by the 1500s. American farm country, especially the South and Appalachia, kept the word long after city houses got indoor bathrooms. DARE survey answers put privy right next to outhouse as a common name for the outside toilet building.
Frequently asked questions
Is a privy the same as an outhouse?
Yes. Privy is the older, softer word. Outhouse is the plain one. Same little building either way.