secretary

[ sek-ri-ter-ee ]

noun

, plural sec·re·tar·ies.

1. a person, usually an official, who is in charge of the records, correspondence, minutes of meetings, and related affairs of an organization, company, association, etc.:

   the secretary of the Linguistic Society of America.

2. a person employed to handle correspondence and do routine work in a business office, usually involving taking dictation, typing, filing, and the like.
3. private secretary.
4. (often initial capital letter) an officer of state charged with the superintendence and management of a particular department of government, as a member of the president's cabinet in the U.S.:

   Secretary of the Treasury.

5. Also called diplomatic secretary. a diplomatic official of an embassy or legation who ranks below a counselor and is usually assigned as first secretary, second secretary, or third secretary.
6. a piece of furniture for use as a writing desk.
7. Also called secretary bookcase. a desk with bookshelves on top of it.

secretary

/ -ərɪ; ˈsɛkrətrɪ; ˌsɛkrɪˈtɛərɪəl /

noun

1. a person who handles correspondence, keeps records, and does general clerical work for an individual, organization, etc
2. the official manager of the day-to-day business of a society or board
3. (in Britain) a senior civil servant who assists a government minister
4. (in the US and New Zealand) the head of a government administrative department
5. (in Britain) See secretary of state
6. (in Australia) the head of a public service department
7. diplomacy the assistant to an ambassador or diplomatic minister of certain countries
8. another name for secretaire

Derived Forms

• secretarial, adjective
• ˈsecretaryship, noun

Other Words From

• secre·tary·ship noun
• sub·secre·tary noun plural subsecretaries
• sub·secre·tary·ship noun
• under·secre·tary·ship noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of secretary¹

1350–1400; Middle English secretarie one trusted with private or secret matters; confidant < Medieval Latin sēcrētārius < Latin sēcrēt ( um ) secret (noun) + -ārius -ary

Word History and Origins

Origin of secretary¹

C14: from Medieval Latin sēcrētārius, from Latin sēcrētum something hidden; see secret

Example Sentences

Trump allies, including Howard Lutnick, a Wall Street executive he tapped for commerce secretary, have acknowledged that tariffs could cause short-term pain for consumers but will be worth the eventual gains for U.S. manufacturers.

From Salon

Yesterday, environment secretary Steve Reed, who was appearing before MPs, once again ruled out the nationalisation of Thames.

From BBC

Conservative shadow home secretary Chris Philp told MPs it came as "no surprise" that Labour was doing "the precise opposite of what they promised in their manifesto".

From BBC

Shadow housing secretary Kevin Hollinrake accused the government of "pulling up the drawbridge on home ownership and limiting aspiration and social mobility".

From BBC

Responding to the announcement, Conservative shadow secretary of defence James Cartlidge criticised it as "cuts, instead of a pathway to 2.5%".

From BBC

Related Words

• assistant
• clerk
• executive secretary