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Synonyms

secretary of state

American  
Or Secretary of State

noun

  1. the head and chief administrator of the U.S. Department of State.

  2. British. any of several ministers in the British government.

    A new secretary of state for the Home Department has been appointed.

  3. (in the U.S.) the appointed or elected official in a state government whose chief function is to distribute statutes, administer elections, keep archives, etc.

secretary of state British  

noun

  1. (in Britain) the head of any of several government departments

  2. (in the US) the head of the government department in charge of foreign affairs ( State Department )

  3. (in certain US states) an official with various duties, such as keeping records

"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
secretary of state Cultural  

  1. The head of the United States Department of State and, as leading member of the cabinet, fourth in line of succession to the presidency. The secretary of state is charged with formulating American foreign policy and conducting relations with other nations.

Etymology

Origin of secretary of state

First recorded in 1610–20

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.

The most famous example of this involves Rex Tillerson, Trump’s first secretary of state, who learned he was fired by a presidential tweet in the middle of a trip to Africa.

From Salon • Apr. 23, 2026

His grandfather John W. Foster served as secretary of state under Benjamin Harrison in the 1890s, and his uncle, Robert Lansing, held the same position under Woodrow Wilson.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 15, 2026

The candidates must also have raised, contributed or lent to their campaigns at least $1 million, based on publicly available data from the California secretary of state.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 6, 2026

The 1988 presidential campaign of Alexander Haig, a former four-star general who served as Ronald Reagan’s first secretary of state, flamed out amid GOP infighting over the Iran–Contra affair.

From Slate • Apr. 6, 2026

Hoover, concerned enough to plan on informing the secretary of state, ordered an immediate investigation of Sasaki.

From "Unbroken" by Laura Hillenbrand

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.