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View synonyms for

secret

[ see-krit ]

adjective

  1. done, made, or conducted without the knowledge of others:

    secret negotiations.

    Synonyms: , ,

    Antonyms: ,

  2. kept from the knowledge of any but the initiated or privileged:

    a secret password.

    Synonyms: ,

  3. faithful or cautious in keeping confidential matters confidential; close-mouthed; discreet.

    Synonyms: , ,

  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 secluded, sheltered, or withdrawn: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: , ,

  7. (of information, a document, etc.)
    1. bearing the classification secret.
    2. limited to persons authorized to use information documents, etc., so classified.


noun

  1. something that is or is kept secret, hidden, or concealed.
  2. 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. Compare classification ( def 5 ).
  6. (initial capital letter) Liturgy. a variable prayer in the Roman and other Latin liturgies, said inaudibly by the celebrant after the offertory and immediately before the preface.

secret

/ ˈːɪ /

adjective

  1. kept hidden or separate from the knowledge of others cryptic
  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
“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

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. in the secret
    among the people who know a secret
“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
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Derived Forms

  • ˈ𳦰ٱ, adverb
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Other Word Forms

  • ·· adverb
  • ··Ա noun
  • ԴDz·· adjective noun
  • ܲ·-· adjective
  • ··· adjective
  • ··· noun
  • ܱ·ٰ·· adjective
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Word History and Origins

Origin of secret1

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English secrette, from Old French secret, from Latin ŧŧٳܲ “hidden,” originally past participle of ŧԱ “t secern
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Word History and Origins

Origin of secret1

C14: via Old French from Latin ŧŧٳܲ concealed, from ŧԱ to sift; see secern
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Idioms and Phrases

Idioms
  1. in secret, unknown to others; in private; secretly:

    A resistance movement was already being organized in secret.

More idioms and phrases containing secret

see in secret ; open secret .
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Example Sentences

Examples have not been reviewed.

Following the crackdown, some traders have resorted to selling their goods in secret, afraid to display them openly for fear of arrest.

From

Someone’s list of secrets is about to get longer.

From

It is hoped the technique will make surveying butterflies and moths quicker and reveal secrets about their behaviour and evolution.

From

The interview comes a month after Mr Goldberg published a story about being added to a secret group chat on the encrypted texting app Signal.

From

Like his competitors at Unitree, Mr Pierce says that the real "secret sauce" is the software that allows the robot to work with humans.

From

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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.

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