private secretary

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noun

a person who attends to the individual or confidential correspondence, files, etc., of a business executive, official, or the like.

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His boss, whom he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

His boss, who he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

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Origin of private secretary

First recorded in 1765–75

Words nearby private secretary

private placement, private practice, private press, private property, private school, private secretary, private sector, private treaty, private trust, private view, private viewdata

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use private secretary in a sentence

They did not regularly speak in the morning — it was their private secretaries who coordinated their schedules.
The Queen’s Man: Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, Dies|Howard Chua-Eoan|April 9, 2021|Time
He now worked for the Presidential General Staff, and his brother Alberto was the private secretary to President Mateos.
Lunik: Inside the CIA’s audacious plot to steal a Soviet satellite|Bobbie Johnson|January 28, 2021|MIT Technology Review
William's private secretary noted, "As everyone probably knows, however, the duke and duchess are just a little competitive."
Kate, William and George’s Tour of Australasia, Key Dates|Tom Sykes|March 20, 2014|DAILY BEAST
At 10 a.m. her private secretary will arrive to discuss correspondence and state papers.
9 Best Life Lessons From ‘How the Queen Can Make You Happy’|Tom Sykes|September 13, 2012|DAILY BEAST

Probably his Private Secretary, considering you a new man, will have failed to furnish the necessary information.
Punch, or the London Charivari, Volume 107, November 3, 1894|Various
And here let me point out for your future guidance the importance of having a private secretary thoroughly up to his work.
Punch, or the London Charivari, Volume 107, November 3, 1894|Various
But the particular Private Secretary of your answerer being not up to his work you get snubbed.
Punch, or the London Charivari, Volume 107, November 3, 1894|Various
Then I'll take you to Sacramento with me next year—I'm a senator this term—as my private secretary, and you'll learn a lot.
Ancestors|Gertrude Atherton
You are a kind of private secretary to the whole family, then; but you work at the law at the same time?
A Hoosier Chronicle|Meredith Nicholson

British Dictionary definitions for private secretary

private secretary

noun

a secretary entrusted with the personal and confidential matters of a business executive

a civil servant who acts as aide to a minister or senior government officialCompare parliamentary private secretary

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012