personal effects

plural noun

: privately owned items (such as clothing and jewelry) normally worn or carried on the person

Synonyms

• belongings
• chattels
• duds
• effects
• gear
• goods
• holdings
• movables
• moveables
• paraphernalia
• personal property
• personalty
• plunder [chiefly dialect]
• possession
• stuff
• things

Examples of personal effects in a Sentence

put all of your personal effects in the bin so that they can be x-rayed

Recent Examples on the Web

The fact that landlords are not responsible for their tenants’ personal effects may lead some landlords to believe that the decision to purchase renters insurance is the tenant’s business. —Ryan Barone, Forbes, 10 Jan. 2025

The couple is mourning the loss of personal effects — family photos and mementos that have no monetary value but are irreplaceable. —Jessica Gelt, Los Angeles Times, 10 Jan. 2025

Photos of personal effects are catalogued online through the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System or NamUs. —Valerie Castro, NBC News, 11 Dec. 2024

Additionally, an auction of the producer’s personal effects that happened last October in Stockholm raised $750,000 for the Tim Bergling Foundation, which works to educate young people about mental health. —Katie Bain, Billboard, 4 Nov. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1818, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

personal effects

plural noun

: privately owned items (as clothing or jewelry) normally worn or carried on the person