Commonly confused words › personal vs. personnel

Personal vs. personnel

Quick answer

Personal means private or relating to one person. Personnel means the staff of an organization.

personal

Belonging to or affecting one particular person.

“That's a personal question.”

personnel

The people employed by an organization.

“All personnel must wear badges.”

How to remember

PersonNEL has two N’s, and staff is more than one person.

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Only authorized _____ may enter.

I keep a _____ journal.