secret agent
Americannoun
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an agent of a secret service.
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(loosely) a person employed to collect the military secrets of one country and relay them to another, especially a person living in a foreign country while so working for their own nation; spy.
noun
Etymology
Origin of secret agent
First recorded in 1830–40
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
"In the cinema, Bond’s legacy as a character has become problematic and his motivations as a modern British secret agent uncertain," he added.
From Barron's • May 26, 2026
Over the next few decades, the secret agent opted for the security of running atop moving trains and hanging off the side of helicopters.
From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 8, 2026
Rocha was arrested in December on charges he worked as a secret agent of Cuba stretching back to the 1970s.
From Seattle Times • Feb. 29, 2024
During the meetings with the undercover FBI agent, Rocha began to divulge details about his time working as a secret agent for the Cuban government, the charging document alleged.
From BBC • Dec. 4, 2023
But after the war, Berg confided in a fellow secret agent, Earl Brodie.
From "Bomb" by Steve Sheinkin
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
