classified
Americanadjective
-
arranged or distributed in classes or according to class.
We plan to review all the classified specimens in the laboratory.
-
designating the part or parts of a publication that contain advertisements or lists arranged by category.
The classified section of our little local newspaper is full of ads for garage sales and cleaning ladies.
-
(of information, a document, etc.)
-
available only to authorized persons.
-
bearing the designation classified.
-
-
confidential or secret.
The firm's promotional budget for next year is classified information.
-
identified as belonging to a specific group or category, as one to which benefits or restrictions apply.
Classified buildings are eligible for state-funded restoration. The bank has a list of classified customers to whom it will not make large loans.
noun
-
classifieds
plural
adjective
-
arranged according to some system of classification
-
government (of information) not available to people outside a restricted group, esp for reasons of national security
-
(of information) closely concealed or secret
-
(of advertisements in newspapers, etc) arranged according to type
-
(of newspapers) containing sports results, esp football results
-
(of British roads) having a number in the national road system. If the number is preceded by an M the road is a motorway, if by an A it is a first-class road, and if by a B it is a secondary road
Usage
What does classified mean? Classified means categorized or labeled in some way. Classified has several different meanings that all have to do with things being sorted in a certain way. It is commonly used to mean secret or confidential, as in that information is classified. Example: The agency keeps a list of people who have been classified as security risks.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of classified
First recorded in 1885–90; 1940–45 classified for def. 3; classify + -ed 2
Explanation
Classified things are organized into categories. For example, classified ads in newspapers are arranged by type, with job listings in one section and apartments for rent in another. Classified documents, on the other hand, are for your eyes only. That is, if you have security clearance. When you classify things, you arrange or sort them into groups, or classes — once this is done, they are classified. Your science book might include sections on animals, classified by species. Sometimes information is categorized as "top-secret," which is another meaning of classified: "I can't show you the classified documents. Only members of the city council can see those."
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.
See Examples For:
Last month, the county Office of the Medical Examiner-Coroner classified Aurora’s death as a homicide.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 14, 2026
Anorthosite is classified as an intrusive igneous rock, meaning it forms when molten material cools and solidifies beneath Earth's surface.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 11, 2026
In contrast to their fierce opposition around the U.S. to workers being classified as employees, Uber and Lyft haven’t fought the unionization push.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 10, 2026
Under Malaysian guidelines, API readings above 100 are classified as unhealthy, above 200 as very unhealthy, above 300 as hazardous, while readings beyond 500 constitute the threshold for declaring a local emergency.
From Barron's ● Oct. 9, 2026
Beginning that very month, Harvey's wiretap commenced recording thousands of classified conversations among Soviet and East German military officials.
From "Spies: The Secret Showdown Between America and Russia" by Marc Favreau
Seek remains Macquarie’s least-preferred ASX-listed classifieds provider due to risks around listings volumes.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 29, 2026
I even scoured the real estate section of the classifieds for potential store-fronts, convinced I just had to find the listings other people overlooked.
From Salon ● Apr. 3, 2025
Reyes found the phone number advertised on Backpages, a classifieds website later shut down by law enforcement.
From Seattle Times ● Mar. 23, 2023
Searches for chickens and “chicken-related items” on New Zealand’s largest auction and classifieds site recently jumped by more than 75 percent.
From New York Times ● Jan. 13, 2023
My dad scoured the newspaper every day, searching the classifieds, calling any that sounded promising, and hanging up either in fury or in disappointment.
From "The Book of Unknown Americans" by Cristina Henríquez
Random Word
Spin the wheel and learn a new word!
Get a wordDefinitions 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.
