secretariat

or sec·re·tar·i·ate

[ sek-ri-tair-ee-uh t ]

/ ˌsɛk rɪˈtɛər i ət /

noun

the officials or office entrusted with administrative duties, maintaining records, and overseeing or performing secretarial duties, especially for an international organization: the secretariat of the United Nations.

a group or department of secretaries.

the place where a secretary transacts business, preserves records, etc.

Nearby words

secreta, secretagog, secretagogue, secretaire, secretarial, secretariat, secretary, secretary bird, secretary of defense, secretary of state, secretary-general

Origin of secretariat

1805–15; < French secrétariat < Medieval Latin sēcrētāriātus. See secretary, -ate³

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for secretariat

And also the Secretary General of the United Nations has also invited me to the Secretariat of the U.N. in New York.
Will There Soon Be Three Living Popes?|Barbie Latza Nadeau|August 19, 2014|DAILY BEAST
But as hard as she tried, she couldn't help but make her pastel cardigan titillating in Secretariat.
Is Diane Lane Too Sexy for Hillary?|Anna Brand|July 29, 2013|DAILY BEAST
They also failed to include a single woman among the 40 secretariat seats.
Post Election, Obama Gambles on Syrian Rebels|Mike Giglio|November 10, 2012|DAILY BEAST
The field is so weak it would make a lame old plowhorse look like Secretariat.
Daily Beast Writers Weigh In on Mitt Romney’s New Hampshire Primary Victory||January 11, 2012|DAILY BEAST

The secretariat is under the charge of a government secretary who ranks next in precedence to the governor.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 4, Slice 3|Various
It must, however, be on record, both in Nuddea and in the Calcutta Secretariat.
The Origin of Finger-Printing|William J. Herschel
Each party committee sets up its own bureau and elects a secretariat.
Area Handbook for Romania|Eugene K. Keefe, Donald W. Bernier, Lyle E. Brenneman, William Giloane, James M. Moore, and Neda A. Walpole
Mr. J: (bridling) Well, Senator, we in the Secretariat don't usually refer to such an occurrence in exactly those terms.
If at First You Don't...|John Brudy
The initiation of the affair by our Secretariat friend would not, in fact, preclude their participation in it.
Mystery at Geneva|Rose Macaulay

British Dictionary definitions for secretariat

secretariat

/ (ˌsɛkrɪˈtɛərɪət) /

noun

an office responsible for the secretarial, clerical, and administrative affairs of a legislative body, executive council, or international organization
the staff of such an office
the building or rooms in which such an office is housed

a body of secretaries

a secretary's place of work; office

the position of a secretary

Word Origin for secretariat

C19: via French from Medieval Latin sēcrētāriātus, from sēcrētārius secretary

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

Word Origin and History for secretariat

secretariat

"office of secretary," 1811, from French secrétariat, from Medieval Latin secretariatus, from secretarius (see secretary). Meaning "division of the Central Committeee of the USSR" is from 1926, from Russian sekretariat.