trade secret

American

noun

a secret process, technique, method, etc., used to advantage in a trade, business, profession, etc.

trade secret British

noun

a secret formula, technique, process, etc, known and used to advantage by only one manufacturer

"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

Etymology

Origin of trade secret

First recorded in 1900–05

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023