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 secluded, sheltered, or withdrawn.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

He claimed that the legal suit had led to a top secret "tremendous military center" being built under the ballroom to be revealed.

From Barron's • Jul. 6, 2026

England had hoped to keep their location secret after hundreds of Mexico supporters surrounded the base of last-32 opponents Ecuador's base, using car horns, roaring motorcycle engines and loud hailers to create a disturbance.

From BBC • Jul. 5, 2026

The ascension of Burnham owes less to secret machinations in smoke-filled backrooms than it does sheer circumstance.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jul. 4, 2026

They told ProPublica it’s likely the first time in modern history that so many consequential decisions were made in secret by its nine members.

From Salon • Jul. 3, 2026

They arrange for someone to treat her in secret.

From "At Last She Stood" by Erin Entrada Kelly

Related Words

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• unpublished