secret

American  

[see-krit] / ˈsi krɪt /

adjective

1. done, made, or conducted without the knowledge of others.

   secret negotiations.

   Synonyms:

   covert, hidden, clandestine

   Antonyms:

   manifest, open

2. kept from the knowledge of any but the initiated or privileged.

   a secret password.

   Synonyms:

   confidential, private

3. faithful or cautious in keeping confidential matters confidential; close-mouthed; discreet.

   Synonyms:

   reticent, secretive, close

4. designed or working to escape notice, knowledge, or observation: the secret police.

   a secret drawer;

   the secret police.

5. secluded, sheltered, or withdrawn.

   a secret hiding place.

6. beyond ordinary human understanding; esoteric.

   Synonyms:

   mysterious, cryptic, occult

7. (of information, a document, etc.)

   1. bearing the classification secret.

   2. limited to persons authorized to use information documents, etc., so classified.

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noun

secrets plural

1. something that is or is kept secret, hidden, or concealed.

2. a mystery.

   the secrets of nature.

3. a reason or explanation not immediately or generally apparent.

4. a method, formula, plan, etc., known only to the initiated or the few: a trade secret.

   the secret of happiness;

   a trade secret.

5. a classification assigned to information, a document, etc., considered less vital to security than top-secret but more vital than confidential, and limiting its use to persons who have been cleared, as by various government agencies, as trustworthy to handle such material.

6. (initial capital letter) a variable prayer in the Roman and other Latin liturgies, said inaudibly by the celebrant after the offertory and immediately before the preface.

idioms

1. in secret, unknown to others; in private; secretly.

   A resistance movement was already being organized in secret.

secret British  

/ ˈsiːkrɪt /

adjective

1. kept hidden or separate from the knowledge of others

2. known only to initiates

   a secret password

3. hidden from general view or use

   a secret garden

4. able or tending to keep things private or to oneself

5. operating without the knowledge of outsiders

   a secret society

6. outside the normal range of knowledge

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noun

1. something kept or to be kept hidden

2. something unrevealed; mystery

3. an underlying explanation, reason, etc, that is not apparent

   the secret of success

4. a method, plan, etc, known only to initiates

5. liturgy a variable prayer, part of the Mass, said by the celebrant after the offertory and before the preface

6. among the people who know a secret

secret More Idioms  

1. see in secret; open secret.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• secretness
  noun
• supersecret
  noun
• nonsecret
  adjective
• quasi-secret
  adjective
• semisecret
  adjective
• ultrasecret
  adjective
• secretly
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• secrets
  plural

Etymology

Origin of secret

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English secrette, from Old French secret, from Latin sēcrētus “hidden,” originally past participle of sēcernere “to secern ”

Explanation

A secret is something you don’t want everybody to know, like your secret crush on the bus driver. A secret can also be a mystery known to only a few — the secret of the lost pyramid. There might be a secret passageway in your basement that only you know about. You could have a secret passion for Japanese anime comics and share that secret with only your closest friends. If you're "in on a secret" — plans for a surprise birthday party, for instance — that means you're in the inner circle of people in the know. Everybody has to keep the secret, or the party won't be a surprise.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

secret secrets

"The priority" was "saving lives," she said, though she made no secret of her concern regarding "the immense natural disaster this is causing".

From Barron's ● Jul. 25, 2026

Film critic Jenna Ipcar has described how “a perfect comedy duo will make their audience feel like a lucky participant instead of just a passive observer, a welcome guest in a secret world.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 25, 2026

The promoter behind some of the biggest comic and entertainment conventions in the UK has banned Meta glasses from its events to stop "secret filming" of guests and attendees.

From BBC ● Jul. 24, 2026

The 1,200-square-foot Ship Wreck House has three decks and pirate details, such as a water cannon and secret passageway leading to a treasure-themed chamber with a skeleton and a chest of doubloons.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 23, 2026

Not because I thought I would magically change; I already knew the secret.

From "Legendary Frybread Drive-In" by Cynthia Leitich Smith

Family secrets and sibling drama: A reader is distraught that their siblings threw away their late father’s journals, which held clues about who he really was.

From Slate ● Jul. 21, 2026

She's more candid on Look At My Life – spilling secrets about the music industry and her relationship with fame over a strobing synth line.

From BBC ● Jul. 18, 2026

Shortly after Max’s trial ended, Anna and Tom got married, Anna got sober, and both buried a few secrets.

From Salon ● Jul. 17, 2026

All manner of high-gloss betrayal, secrets and bad choices will be revealed.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 15, 2026

She led her daughters back to their apartment with a vitamin box full of Soviet secrets under her baby son’s blanket.

From "Fallout: Spies, Superbombs, and the Ultimate Cold War Showdown" by Steve Sheinkin

Related Words

• classified
• covert
• furtive
• hush-hush
• mysterious
• obscure
• private
• secluded
• undercover
• underground
• undisclosed
• unknown
• unpublished