secondary source
Americannoun
-
a description based on a first-hand account, often of a historical event.
-
an analysis of or commentary on a literary work or piece of art.
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.
To fill the gap in “sealift,” China’s military would lean on a secondary source: civilian ships.
From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 7, 2025
Gone are competitive purses because of the lack of a secondary source of income such as casino gambling.
From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 2, 2025
Baucus said in depositions with attorneys that the clinic’s practice of declaring some patients eligible for benefits without confirmation of their condition from a secondary source such as an X-ray was legitimate.
From Seattle Times • Jun. 29, 2023
The College Board has said it has sought copyright permission to distribute a range of secondary source text from authors and scholars, including Crenshaw, Ta-Nehisi Coates and James Baldwin.
From Washington Post • Feb. 9, 2023
Most had recently adopted agriculture or were soon to do so, but it was still a secondary source of food, a supplement to the wild products of the land.
From "1491" by Charles C. Mann
![]()
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.