inside information

USAGE SUMMARY

The phrase "inside information" is correct and usable in written English. You can use it when referring to confidential or privileged information that is not available to the general public. For example, "The analyst had inside information about the company's upcoming merger." Alternative expressions include "privileged information" and "confidential information."

✓ Grammatically correct

News & Media

Formal & Business

Legal

Human-verified examples from authoritative sources

Exact Expressions

59 human-written examples

Their hypothesis, which seems completely plausible, is that government insiders were trading on their inside information, buying up stocks of companies like United Fruit before the 1954 coup in Guatemala, and Anaconda before the 1973 coup in Chile.

The New Yorker

Moreover, there was insufficient evidence that Newman and Chiasson knew that the insiders had benefitted in any way by supplying the inside information.

The New Yorker

The rewards for having inside information are enormous.

The New Yorker

But there was no sign that Kumar was making trades on inside information.

The New Yorker

Because investors are kept in the dark, the value of inside information is artificially inflated.

The New Yorker

Halperin was born into the Washington establishment, and learned firsthand the power of inside information.

The New Yorker

He had no inside information — just a sense from the mood on the street.

The New Yorker

Capital understood that providing Cohen with your best trading ideas involved providing Cohen with inside information".

The New Yorker

It seemed that Crist might be capitalizing on inside information that had been gathered in the Times' good name.

The New Yorker

On the other hand, Nixon intuited correctly that Ellsberg might possess more inside information, this time about his own Administration.

The New Yorker

Human-verified similar examples from authoritative sources

Similar Expressions

1 human-written examples

In both cases, politically connected investment groups use their inside-information networks to attach themselves to those sections of the federal bureaucracy that will be primed by their party's imperatives of federal spending.

The New Yorker

Expert writing Tips

Best practice

Be aware of the legal weight of the phrase. In financial contexts, it often implies illegal activity or ethical breaches.

Common error

A frequent mistake is attempting to pluralize the phrase. Because 'information' is uncountable, saying 'the detectives gathered several inside informations' is grammatically incorrect. Instead, use 'several pieces of "inside information"' or 'diverse "inside information"'.

Linguistic Context

As a noun phrase, "inside information" typically acts as the direct object of verbs such as "have", "obtain", "use" or "provide". In the examples provided by Ludwig, it frequently follows prepositions like "on" or "about" to specify the subject of the privileged knowledge. Grammatically, 'information' is an uncountable noun, meaning it does not take a plural form or an indefinite article like 'an'.

Expression frequency: Very common

Frequent in

News & Media

85%

Formal & Business

10%

Legal

5%

Less common in

Social Media

3%

Academia

2%

Wiki

1%

Ludwig's WRAP-UP

In summary, "inside information" is a highly versatile and correct noun phrase used to describe privileged or non-public knowledge. According to Ludwig AI and the analyzed examples, it is most common in News & Media contexts, particularly when discussing finance, law and high-stakes politics. It is grammatically important to remember that 'information' is uncountable, meaning the phrase should never be pluralized. While it carries a neutral linguistic tone, its real-world application often touches on the legal boundaries of 'insider trading' and ethics. Whether you are writing a financial report or a crime novel, using this phrase correctly signals a professional grasp of both English grammar and institutional terminology.

More alternative expressions

Phrases that express similar concepts, ordered by semantic similarity:

non-public information

Commonly used in formal regulatory and legal definitions of insider trading

privileged information

Suggests information protected by legal or professional confidentiality rather than just internal access

insider tips

More informal and often implies actionable advice based on secret knowledge

confidential data

Focuses on the security and restricted nature of the information itself

internal intelligence

Emphasizes the strategic gathering of information within an organization

proprietary knowledge

Refers specifically to information owned by a company, such as trade secrets

sensitive material

Broad term for information that could be harmful if disclosed

back-channel info

More informal, suggesting information received through unofficial or private routes

classified intel

Appropriate for government, military or high-security contexts

trade secrets

Specifically refers to formulas, practices or designs used for business advantage

FAQs

What can I say instead of "inside information"?

Depending on the context, you can use more formal alternatives like "privileged information" or "non-public information". For a more informal tone, you might use "insider tips".

Is it "inside information" or "insider information"?

Both are correct and used frequently. "inside information" is often preferred in legal and financial contexts to describe the data itself, while "insider information" emphasizes the source. Ludwig examples show a slight preference for the former in high-end journalism.

How do I use "inside information" in a sentence?

You can use it as a direct object: "He was accused of trading on "inside information"". You can also use it with a possessive: "The journalist's "inside information" proved to be accurate".

Is it correct to say "an inside information"?

No, it is incorrect because 'information' is an uncountable noun. Instead of "an inside information", you should say "a piece of "inside information"" or simply "some "inside information"".