secret
done, made, or conducted without the knowledge of others: secret negotiations.
kept from the knowledge of any but the initiated or privileged: a secret password.
faithful or cautious in keeping confidential matters confidential; close-mouthed; discreet.
designed or working to escape notice, knowledge, or observation: a secret drawer;the secret police.
secluded, sheltered, or withdrawn: a secret hiding place.
beyond ordinary human understanding; esoteric.
(of information, a document, etc.)
bearing the classification secret.
limited to persons authorized to use information documents, etc., so classified.
something that is or is kept secret, hidden, or concealed.
a mystery: the secrets of nature.
a reason or explanation not immediately or generally apparent.
a method, formula, plan, etc., known only to the initiated or the few: the secret of happiness;a trade secret.
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.: Compare classification (def. 5).
(initial capital letter)Liturgy. a variable prayer in the Roman and other Latin liturgies, said inaudibly by the celebrant after the offertory and immediately before the preface.
Idioms about secret
in secret, unknown to others; in private; secretly: A resistance movement was already being organized in secret.
Origin of secret
1Other words for secret
1 | clandestine, hidden, concealed, covert |
2 | private, confidential |
3 | close, secretive; reticent |
6 | occult, cryptic, mysterious |
Opposites for secret
Other words from secret
- se·cret·ly, adverb
- se·cret·ness, noun
- non·se·cret, adjective, noun
- qua·si-se·cret, adjective
- sem·i·se·cret, adjective
- su·per·se·cret, noun
- ul·tra·se·cret, adjective
Words Nearby secret
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use secret in a sentence
It could require a whole new breakthrough, or the secret ingredient may already be out there, waiting in a stack of old research papers.
A New Algorithm for Graph Crossings, Hiding in Plain Sight | Stephanie DeMarco | September 15, 2020 | Quanta MagazinePart of the beauty of the Tabard Inn is that everyone thinks it’s their little secret, their special spot.
According to Forbes, Americans are inundated with 4,000 to 10,000 every single day, and it’s no secret that they start to filter them out eventually.
Five reasons why SEO should be prioritized over paid media campaigns | Ryan Gould | September 4, 2020 | Search Engine WatchMany of the alleged secrets were not revealed, but Mak is believed to have passed intelligence related to quieting submarine propulsion to avoid detection.
A brief history of US-China espionage entanglements | Konstantin Kakaes | September 3, 2020 | MIT Technology ReviewIt’s no secret that our infrastructure needs a major overhaul.
Uncharted Power’s Jessica O. Matthews has a plan to revive America’s crumbling infrastructure | Brooke Henderson | August 23, 2020 | Fortune
In secret, before the referendum, the council went ahead and fluoridated the water anyway.
The death toll, which experts believe has been significantly undercut by secret burials, stands at 7,905.
Henri Paul actually worked for the French secret Service and he had €200,000 in his account when he only earned €30,000 a year.
Harry’s Daddy, and Diana’s ‘Murder’: Royal Rumors In a New Play | Tom Sykes | January 4, 2015 | THE DAILY BEASTNever mind the huge buildup of clandestine operatives and secret warriors since 9/11.
ISIS Fight Has a Spy Shortage, Intel Chair Says | Kimberly Dozier | January 2, 2015 | THE DAILY BEASTSlowly, slowly, dance classes may cease to be such secret and guilty pleasures in Iran.
Iran’s Becoming a Footloose Nation as Dance Lessons Spread | IranWire | January 2, 2015 | THE DAILY BEASTThe remarkable thing was that all the hurrying people she met seemed also each of them to be on a secret and mystic errand.
Hilda Lessways | Arnold BennettTo Berthier, if to any one, Bonaparte entrusted his secret designs, for he knew that he could do so in safety.
Napoleon's Marshals | R. P. Dunn-PattisonHe must be The saltest fish that swims the sea.And, oh!He has a secret woe!
Dr. Adam Weishaupt, professor of canon law at Ingolstadt, founded the secret society of the illuminati.
The Every Day Book of History and Chronology | Joel MunsellThe obeying of several hints, of secret impulses, argues great wisdom.
British Dictionary definitions for secret
/ (ˈsiːkrɪt) /
kept hidden or separate from the knowledge of others: Related adjective: cryptic
known only to initiates: a secret password
hidden from general view or use: a secret garden
able or tending to keep things private or to oneself
operating without the knowledge of outsiders: a secret society
outside the normal range of knowledge
something kept or to be kept hidden
something unrevealed; mystery
an underlying explanation, reason, etc, that is not apparent: the secret of success
a method, plan, etc, known only to initiates
liturgy a variable prayer, part of the Mass, said by the celebrant after the offertory and before the preface
in the secret among the people who know a secret
Origin of secret
1Derived forms of secret
- secretly, adverb
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
Other Idioms and Phrases with secret
see in secret; open secret.
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
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