secret admirer
Americannoun
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a person who is romantically attracted to someone else but shows it only in a way that does not reveal their own identity, as by sending anonymous gifts or messages.
I found an unsigned valentine on my desk from a secret admirer.
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a person who esteems or has a high opinion of someone or something but hides this fact from others.
Only after his death, when his diaries were discovered, did we learn that he was a secret admirer of opera.
Etymology
Origin of secret admirer
First recorded in 1600–10
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.
Treat broccoli like a beautiful bouquet of flowers sent from a secret admirer.
From Salon • Mar. 4, 2022
"It was like a secret admirer type thing," Petillo told Fox News.
From Fox News • Dec. 22, 2021
Mourning the loss of her recently deceased friend, a woman receives a surprising Christmas card from a secret admirer.
From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 18, 2019
“I’m a secret admirer of Branson,” he said, citing the character who supports Ireland’s independence from Britain.
From New York Times • Sep. 18, 2019
I have a secret admirer, and it’s probably your brother.
From "From Twinkle, with Love" by Sandhya Menon
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.
